


Year 2: Of Spiders and Snakes

by CiciWeezil



Series: Before the Thunder [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Harry Potter was Raised by Remus Lupin and Sirius Black, M/M, wolfstar
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-02-10 13:27:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 26,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18661339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CiciWeezil/pseuds/CiciWeezil
Summary: Harry and Kitty are ready to begin their second year of Hogwarts. There's so much to be excited about! Ginny is beginning her first year, there's Quidditch tryouts, new school books, and a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor!It's not all fun and games, though. Someone, or something, is attacking students and the very unlikable familiars of cranky caretakers. And only one question remains: Will they catch the culprit, or will Hogwarts close its doors forever?





	1. Bonjour!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can we stop and appreciate the fact that one of the character tags you can add is 'Draco Malfoy's owl'? I added it just for the hell of it. I don't think it ever had a name. In my fic her name is Clementine. 
> 
> Oh, speaking of fics, here it is, sooner than I expected: Year 2! 
> 
> In case you didn't notice after reading the last two parts (and the bloody tags), this is a major alternate universe. Major canon divergence. 
> 
> Now with that out of the way, here it is, chapter 1 of a projected 16 chapters (that's 'projected', as in most likely, or in the weatherman's lingo: it's probably going to happen, but there's a high chance it won't, so bring your umbrella and your sunglasses and your winter coat).

Kitty practically bounced into the flat. 

“I can’t believe we’re really here!” she cried.

Harry followed her and looked around, taking it all in. The wood and lace decor was simple, like the rooms at the Leaky Cauldron, but he could tell everything was hand-made. The three-bedroom flat in the magical district of Marseille was the perfect size for the little family.

“It’s hard to believe this building is new,” remarked Regulus, setting their luggage down. “It looks older than Ollivanders.”

“Almost like magic,” joked Ruth, opening every door and peeking inside. “Which room is ours?”

Two of the rooms featured one large bed in each, while the third had two smaller beds. Kitty and Harry left their things in this room and continued to explore the rest of the flat.

“What a view!” cried Sirius, who had opened the curtains in one of the bedrooms. “You can see all of L’voie d’Avinau from here.”

Harry looked out the window, too, and saw the magical district of Marseille sprawled out below them. It wasn’t much different than Diagon Alley. A long, winding street, with stairs here and there to combat the hilly landscape, lined on either side with brightly colored buildings and shops, old and new.

“Remy, come see this!” Sirius called, turning to find he wasn’t there. “Remus?”

To no one’s surprise, they found Remus in the kitchen. 

“Everything to your liking, love?” asked Sirius. 

Remus hummed. “No Muggle appliances, but Molly’s taught me to cook in the old oven and fireplace, so it’s no matter, really.”

With a grin, Sirius wrapped his arms around his husband. “Come see the view, Remy.”

Rolling his eyes, Harry returned to his and Kitty’s room. Kitty was already unpacking her clothes into the upper half of the chest of drawers. She glanced up when her cousin arrived. “We’re going to be here for three weeks. May as well get comfortable.”

“Good thing there’s separate drawers,” said Harry. “Your trunk is a mess. How do you find anything?”

Kitty shrugged. “It’s organized chaos, dear cousin. Don’t judge.”

Harry chuckled and began to unpack his own belongings, which was mostly clothes, both Muggle and magical. He had, of course, packed a few books to read. Remus had lent him several titles by Jules Verne, two of which he had brought with him, as well as a guidebook to Magical France that he’d found in their home library. He set these, along with his sketchbook, on his bedside table.

“Aw, you brought Padfoot?” asked Kitty, peeking in his trunk.

“Of course I did,” said Harry. He picked up the black dog plush. Then he reached down and picked up Moony, and then Prongs. He set all three on his bed. He returned to his trunk and picked up Flower, his stuffed doe, and set her between Moony and Prongs.

Kitty giggled and held up her Sorceress Sophie. “I may have brought more clothes for her than for myself.”

Harry snickered, and went over to the window to set up Hedwig’s cage. The snowy owl had flown off to hunt when they’d arrived in France, but Sirius had assured him that she would find their rooms easily. 

Aurora hopped onto the window ledge, and stared out at the sky, her tail flicking back and forth.

“Will you keep a lookout for Hedwig, then?” asked Harry. The Siamese cat meowed, but didn’t look away from the window.

“I think that means ‘yes’,” said Ruth from the doorway. “I hope you both brought something nice to wear. Regulus found a very nice place for dinner.”

“One that serves red meat?” asked Kitty, hopefully.

Ruth shrugged. “I have no idea, but considering half of us are werewolves, including himself, I’m sure he took your unique tastes into account. As for me, I’ve been looking forward to trying some authentic French cuisine.”

Harry was unsure, too. “The food is something I’ve been worried about, too. I don’t really like shellfish… or snails…”

Kitty made of face. 

“I see someone hasn’t read their guidebook,” said Regulus, popping into the room. “Otherwise you would know that the French love red meat, and they like it rare.”

“Yes!” cheered Kitty.

“Rare?” said Harry. 

Sirius came to his rescue. “There’s plenty you’ll like, Prongslet. Now, get dressed. It’s a restaurant here on L’voie d’Avinau, so it’ll be wizards galore.”

* * *

“Mr. Scamander?” asked Remus, tapping the shoulder of a familiar man outside the restaurant they were about to enter.

The grey-haired wizard in the blue coat turned around, surprised. He instantly recognized them. “Ah, the Black family! Wonderful to see you again. Welcome to France. And who might you be, my dear?”

“This is my girlfriend, Ruth Zwitterly,” said Regulus.

“Lovely to meet you,” said Newt, before turning to the children, who hadn’t seen him since their last visit to Gildor’s Rock three years ago. “Harry and Kitty, you’re both growing faster than a baby dragon!”

Kitty quirked an eyebrow as she thought of Norbert. “Yeah… I doubt that.”

“If you don’t mind us asking,” said Sirius. “What are you doing in France?”

“Oh, just catching up with an old friend,” said Newt. “A very old one. I’m afraid he doesn’t have much time left, relatively speaking.”

“Do you mean Nicholas Flamel?” asked Harry.

Newt paused, taken aback, perhaps, at the accuracy of Harry’s guess. “I’d forgotten how clever you are. Yes, I do mean him. I suppose he’s fresh on your minds, though. Albus told me you and your friends saved the stone just a month ago. Well done.”

Harry and Kitty smiled proudly.

“Newt! There you are!” 

A handsome blonde wizard approached from the other side of the street. He looked to be about Regulus’ age.

“Nick, I’m afraid I got a bit lost,” said Newt. “But I ran into some friends, so it wasn’t a terrible thing.”

“Your name is Nick?” said Remus, glancing between Newt and the newcomer.

“Ah, yes, I suppose introductions are in order,” said Newt, and he named each of them in turn. “And this is Nicholas Flamel.”

The young man, whose French accent was barely noticeable, smiled at them. “Perry and I were going to have dinner with Newt. I don’t suppose you’d like to join us?”

Kitty broke the stunned silence. “Aren’t you… six hundred years old?”

Flamel chuckled. “What, did you expect me to look like Dumbledore?”

“Um… yes?” said Harry.

“Thank you for the invitation,” said Regulus, answering Flamel’s previous question. “We’d love to have dinner with you.”

“Wonderful,” said Flamel, and they walked inside the restaurant together. “Perry will join us soon. She’s finishing up her latest project.”

Once seated, Nicholas and Newt regaled them with stories of the past from long before they were born.

“I never knew you helped to defeat Grindelwald,” said Kitty, speaking quietly, as the name was not to be taken lightly in most of Europe. 

“I didn’t do much,” said Newt.

“You don’t give yourself enough credit, Newt,” said a lovely young woman standing behind Flamel. With dark hair, eyes, and skin, she seemed to be a perfect opposite of Flamel, who was very pale with blonde hair and blue eyes.

“Perry!” cried Flamel happily. “My darling, come sit and meet our new friends.” 

She greeted them sweetly and added more to the stories Newt and her husband had told them. 

Their first course arrived and went, followed by the next, but they hardly noticed the food, so enraptured they were in the tales of the living, breathing relics before them.

Before they knew it, the sun had dropped below the horizon.

“Hmm…” said Flamel. “I’d forgotten what it was like for time to pass so quickly.”

Perry took his hand. “We are so happy to have met you all. Thank you for having dinner with us.”

Harry thought he saw something odd in the Flamels’ eyes, but he couldn’t place it. It was in Newt’s expression that he saw it.

Sadness.

“Where are you going to go now?” Harry asked bravely.

Nicholas Flamel smiled softly at him. “To see our children, little one. We have missed them dearly.”

“Where are your children?” asked Kitty.

“Where everyone goes in the end,” said Perry. “But where that may be… well, even in six lifetimes we’ve never been able to answer that question.”

“Newt said you didn’t have much time left,” said Sirius.

“Ah, but to a normal person we do,” said Flamel. “You see, we took the last of our elixir six years ago. It makes the drinker young again and keeps the body from aging for seven years. After that, the body ages normally. We can live for many more years.”

“Unless we intervene,” said Perry. “We’ve decided we are ready to let go.”

The others nodded forlornly.

“We wish you all the best,” said Flamel, standing. “And please, don’t be sad. We have enjoyed a long and fulfilling life, and we are saying goodbye with happiness.”

“We’ve seen the world grow and change,” said Perry, squeezing Newt’s shoulder as she, too, stood. “For worse and for better. We’ve even caused some of the change. But it is time to leave it in the hands of others.”

“The world will miss you,” said Sirius. “But I am glad you go in peace.”

The Flamels smiled widely. 

“Adieu,” said Nicholas Flamel, and he and Perry walked out of the cafe. 

In the corner of his eye, Harry saw something glinting. The waiter had brought their check twenty minutes ago, and now it lay underneath a small stack of galleons.

Newt chuckled. “They never do let me pay.”

No one spoke as they all stood to leave. When they were almost out the door, Newt said, “I’m going to miss them… But I’m older than I seem. One day, sooner than you think, perhaps, I will join them. I used to be nervous about death. There was so much I wanted to do. But knowing there are people like all of you makes it easier to let go.”

None of them had a good reply to that.

“You know, Newt,” said Sirius. “You changed the world, too. You opened the hearts and minds of others and taught them truths about creatures they feared.”

“You’re doing the same,” Newt told him, glancing at the three werewolves. “So don’t count yourself out.”

He smiled down at Kitty and Harry. “I hope I get the pleasure of seeing what you become. And if I don’t, then just know I have high expectations of both of you.”

Kitty grinned. “We won’t let you down, Mr. Scamander.”

Harry nodded in agreement.

“Good,” Newt said, straightening. “Now, I’d better go before Tina sends out a search party.”

“NEWT!” called a voice from somewhere behind the magizoologist.

Newt sighed. “Too late…” 

A witch around Newt’s age marched towards them. Newt waved to them and trotted over to his wife to beg forgiveness for his lateness.

“Ready to head back?” asked Sirius, taking Remus’ hand.

“I know they told us not to be sad,” said Ruth, who had been quiet most of the night. “But I can’t help it.”

Regulus wiped a tear from her cheek. “It’s alright. I don’t think they’ll be angry if we shed a few tears.”

They walked in silence for a few minutes, lost in their own thoughts. It wasn’t until they’d entered the flat once more that they spoke.

“I think I know what I want to be when I’m older,” said Kitty.

“What’s that, love?” asked Regulus.

“An alchemist,” Kitty told him.

Ruth smiled. “You’ll be a bloody brilliant one.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I enjoy the Fantastic Beasts movies, but reading the books, I always had this image that the stone actually granted the user 'eternal youth' so when imagining Nicholas Flamel, I saw a young man, perhaps in his twenties or thirties. And honestly, I still see him that way, despite his portrayal in FB. So that is the way he is in my fic, and his wife.
> 
> Attention fellow fanfic readers: You're invited to the Discord Server Beta On It: https://discord.gg/7u7qvBU. Here you can interact with me, my beta and fellow ficwriter Leahcar260, and other readers. Come join us!


	2. Little Women

“Is he alright?” asked the balding travel agency wizard on duty. 

The family had just returned from France via portkey, and were preparing to floo home. Harry, however, looked queasy.

Remus wrapped an arm around Harry’s shoulders, thankful the TA wizard didn’t recognize them. 

“He doesn’t like the floo,” said Remus, as Harry buried his face in Remus’ robe. Most twelve year olds would insist they were too old for any public display of affection, but not Harry. 

The wizard nodded knowingly. “Who does?”

It was now their turn, and Sirius stepped inside the fireplace with his trunk, taking a handful of powder and said, “Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place.”

“Your turn,” said Remus quietly, nudging Harry forward. Reluctantly, the boy followed Sirius’ example.

“Blimey,” said the TA wizard, having noticed the boy’s scar. “Was that Harry Potter?”

Remus gave him a confused look as he took some floo powder. “I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about.”

With that, Remus flooed away.

Sirius and Harry were sitting on the floor greeting Paddy when Remus landed. He quickly moved out of the way for Regulus, Kitty, and Ruth to join them.

“I think we just made his day,” said Regulus, grabbing the leash Sirius was holding and whistling for Paddy to follow him.

“Who?” asked Sirius, glancing between his brother’s leaving and his husband.

“The damn travel agent thinks he saw Harry Potter,” said Ruth. “He’s not wrong, but people should mind their own business.” 

“And that would be why we like you, Ruth,” said Remus, waving his wand to clear the ash off their clothes and trunks. “You weren’t starstruck when you first met us.”

Harry’s shoulders sagged a bit. “It was nice in France. No one knew me there.”

Sirius ruffled his hair in sympathy. He, too, could hardly walk through Diagon Alley without attracting attention.

After the initial aftermath of the werewolf legislation had passed, they’d been left well enough alone. But Harry and Kitty starting Hogwarts seemed to trigger a new wave of interest in the Black family. Sirius’ popularity and renown as a top-notch Auror did not help matters.

An owl swooped in just then and dropped a letter in front of Remus. 

“Isn’t that a Hogwarts owl?” asked Kitty, sometimes too smart for her own good, in Remus’ opinion.

“Hmm,” said Remus. “It’s almost as if we have friends there or something.”

Kitty giggled at his sarcasm and then waited expectantly. But Remus put the letter in his pocket and turned his attention to their trunks. One at a time, he began charming each to go to its’ owner’s room, except Ruth’s, which he set gently in a corner of the room.

“You aren’t going to open it?” asked Kitty.

“I will later,” said Remus. 

His niece looked disappointed, but she resigned herself to following her trunk upstairs. Aurora slinked out behind her.

“Alright, Harry?” asked Sirius.

Harry nodded. “My stomach feels better. I think I’ll unpack, too.” 

Sirius smiled. “Good. Hedwig and Thatch should be here, soon.”

Remus and Sirius watched him go.

“They both look exhausted,” said Ruth. “I am, too.”

“I think we all are,” said Remus. “Marseille was amazing, but all the excitement was draining.”

“I say we order Chinese,” said Sirius, sitting down on the couch and inviting Remus to join him.

But Remus was reading his letter. 

“Well?” Asked Sirius, somewhat impatient.

Remus grinned. “It's official.”

* * *

A week later, as their first month of summer came to an end, and Ginny’s birthday drew closer, the Blacks had Hermione, the Malfoys, the Weasleys, and the Longbottoms for a homework session. 

After providing some helpful books for the children to use for their homework, Remus took Ginny with him to the study. It was his job to distract her while the others planned her party. 

Over the years, Remus had become Ginny’s favorite person, so the task naturally fell to him. He didn’t mind, of course, genuinely enjoying her company.

Even with the influence of six older brothers, Ginny somehow managed to remain her own person. Sure, she often displayed some aspect of one of her brothers - Percy’s studiousness, Bill’s cleverness, the twins’ mischievousness. 

Yet, most of the time, she was just Ginny. Kind and calm even when everyone else was angry or upset, complete with her own brand of wit and charm, Ginny was a unique, strong individual. Remus was proud to be her surrogate uncle.

* * *

“I think we should do a Harpies theme,” said Kitty.

“Harpies?” Hermione inquired. “I heard they’re rather nasty creatures. Why would that be the party theme?”

“She means the Quidditch team,” Ron explained. “Holyhead Harpies. They’re the only all-female team in Britain. Ginny’s a huge fan.”

“Oh, right,” said Hermione. “Sorry. I was just reading about magical creatures for our Defense essay.”

“Happens to the best of us,” said Draco. “I think Kitty’s idea is a brilliant one. We can make decorations and invitations and bake a cake.”

“Do you know how to bake?” asked Hermione.

“Mum taught me,” said Draco. Hermione looked impressed.

“We should host it at our house,” said Fred. “Then we can have a Quidditch game.”

“I’ll keep score,” said Hermione, preferring to keep her feet on the ground. 

Harry wrote down their plans as they made them, while Neville compiled a guest list so they could start making invitations. Sirius appeared at one point to inform them that Ginny was coming soon and they should get back to their homework.

When the almost-birthday girl returned, Harry asked, “What did you do with Uncle Remus?”

Ginny smirked. “That’s for me to know and for you to find out.”

The other children looked at each other, confused, and then shrugged, going about their work again.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the old classroom, Narcissa, Augusta, and Molly sat at a table in the corner, discussing their new business venture. They’d spent all of the previous year making plans for it - a daycare in Diagon Alley.

“It’s too bad Remus won’t be joining us,” said Narcissa. “He’s so good with children.”

“Our loss is someone else’s gain,” said Molly. 

“I’m just glad the paperwork for the building is finally done,” said Augusta. “These past few months have been so tedious.”

“We’ve already got a few families interested in enrolling,” said Narcissa. “Once we’ve got more business under us, we can expand the age level.”

The three witches had easily decided who would teach which age group. Molly favored infants, and Augusta had chosen the toddler group. Narcissa had taken the three and four year old class. Each of them already had two or three students, two of whom were werewolves from Half-Moon Village.

“I’ve finished the supply lists for the first month,” said Molly. “How is your curriculum coming, Narcissa?”

Since she had the oldest children, Narcissa had a little more to do in planning for each day. “The first month is finished. I don’t want to plan too far ahead, but Remus helped me create a general outline of skills I want to teach them.”

In the center of the room, Sirius and Regulus were putting the finishing touches on a new table. Now that the children were all going to Hogwarts, there was no longer a need for the classroom. Instead, the family had decided to turn it into a rec room. They’d ordered a large octagonal table perfect for the children to play Fossils and Flames and their other favorite games. 

The table the women were using was actually a small chess table that had, until recently, stood in the study. Remus had moved it upstairs for anyone who wished to play it. 

“All right, boys?” asked Augusta, the only one old enough to call the two grown men ‘boys’.

“I think we’ll have our dining table back after this,” said Sirius. “I know the children are over the moon, but Remus has been looking forward to hosting a dinner for weeks.”

“That can’t be the only reason Remus is happy,” said Narcissa. 

“Oh, there’s plenty more for him to be chuffed about,” said Sirius, with a grin. “He told you, then?”

“Of course he did,” said Narcissa. “You may be his husband, Sirius, but we’re his friends. He tells us everything.”

“Everything, eh?” asked Regulus, smirking.

Sirius’ smile faltered, while the women laughed heartily at his expense.

* * *

“How long does it take to put shoes on?” asked Ruth, impatiently. She and Maddy were sitting in the drawing room, waiting to take Kitty to the cinema.

“I think she said she was going to the loo, too,” said Maddy.

A high-pitched, and unfortunately recognizable, scream startled both witches onto their feet. They dashed up the stairs, to the top floor, only to find Regulus standing in the doorway of the lavatory, face paler than the moon he so hated, looking helpless.

“What’s wrong?” asked Ruth.

Remus, who stood with Sirius near Regulus’ bedroom, sighed. “Kitty’s just started… um, puberty.”

Ruth and Maddy exchanged glances.

“You call this puberty?!” cried Kitty from the restroom. “There’s blood on my pants!” 

“Blood?” said a small voice behind them.

They turned to see a very confused Harry halfway up the stairs.

Sirius slipped past the women, took Harry by the arm and dragged him back downstairs, assuring him that Kitty was fine and he’d understand when he was older.

“Reg, we’ll take care of this,” said Ruth. She pushed the man out of the way.

“I’ll be back,” said Maddy, disappearing to the floors below. Seconds later, they heard the floo.

“Where’s she gone?” asked Kitty, still indignant, but thankfully covered by a knee-length purple dress. Her bloody pants lay discarded on the tile floor. 

Ruth glanced behind her to find Remus calmly directing Regulus to his room.

Kitty crossed her arms.

“I know you don’t want to hear this, Kit,” said Ruth. “But this is a perfectly normal part of becoming a woman. We were planning on telling you about this next week, after Ginny had her party.”

“It hurts,” said Kitty. “Why does it hurt?”

“Sometimes it does,” said Ruth. “I’ll explain everything after we’ve got you cleaned up. Remus?”

“Yes?” came the answer from across the hall. 

“You still have that potion for minor pains?” 

“Of course,” said Remus. “I’ll be right back.”

Ruth looked back at Kitty, and could tell she was on the verge of tears. Her heart ached for her future stepdaughter, knowing it would be a long night for her.


	3. Back to the Alley

“Ginny, come back here!” cried Molly, as the youngest Weasley skipped ahead of them in the crowded street.

The group consisted of Sirius, Remus, Harry, Narcissa, Draco, Molly and Ginny. Kitty, Regulus, and Ruth were visiting Ruth’s parents at the Apothecary, while Arthur and the rest of the Weasleys shopped separately, as were the Longbottoms and Grangers.

In moments, the girl was back at her mother’s side. 

“You may be eleven, now, love, but you’re still not old enough to go about the alley alone,” Molly admonished.

“Sorry, Mum,” said Ginny. She sported a brand new Holyhead Harpies bow in her hair, a gift from Kitty at her eleventh birthday party. 

The children had done most of the work of making invitations and decorations for Ginny’s party, with some help from their parents for the food and cake. Ginny had later declared it the best birthday party ever, while her mother nearly burst into tears of happiness.

“Oh, my,” said Narcissa. “What is everyone doing at Flourish & Blotts?”

“Haven’t you heard?” asked a wizard in the incredibly long line outside the book shop. “Gilderoy Lockhart’s here for a book-signing!”

Molly gasped. “Gilderoy Lockhart? Oh, I wish I had my copy of his Guide to Household Pests!”

“I’m not sure we’ll ever get through this line,” said Remus. He didn’t particularly like Lockhart, but he knew Molly fancied him. 

“We haven’t got anywhere else to be,” said Narcissa. 

“What about my wand?” asked Ginny.

“Don’t worry, love,” said Remus. “We’ll get you to Ollivanders. Either way, we have to get in line to get your books, so there’s no helping it now.”

Ginny nodded and followed everyone to the line. 

Miraculously, they made it into the store after a half hour. 

“Harry, come this way,” said Sirius, leading the boy out of the book-signing line, while Remus pulled Ginny away to find her books. 

“Harry Potter?” said a voice behind them. 

Sirius turned and immediately regretted doing so. Gilderoy Lockhart was staring at them, bewildered. 

“Merlin’s beard!” cried a photographer, reaching for Harry to pull him over to Lockhart. “Come ‘ere, boy. A picture of you and Lockhart will make the front page.”

Sirius shoved the man’s hand away, while simultaneously putting himself in front of the boy. “Hands off, thank you.”

The photographer gave him an annoyed look, before doing a double take and seemingly realizing who he was.

Lockhart walked over to them. “Mr. Blake, if you don’t mind, a photograph with the Boy Who Lived would be-”

“Not happening,” said Sirius. “And it’s Black.”

“My apologies, of course,” said Lockhart. “But it would do wonders for his image, as well. I am, after all, Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third-”

“I said ‘no’,” Sirius said firmly.

“Perhaps we should ask Mr. Potter,” said the photographer. “See what he has to say.”

“He is twelve,” said Sirius. “I’m his guardian and until he’s an adult, I get to make these choices for him. Now, good day to you.”

He turned around, pushing Harry towards the Charms section, far away from Lockhart and the Prophet photographer, and ignoring their blubbering. 

Harry quickly found the one book he and Kitty needed: Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2, and followed Sirius to the register. He tried to cover his scar with his fringe, and ducked his head down as they passed the shortening line leading to Lockhart’s table.

“Alright, there?” asked Remus. He and Ginny stood with Narcissa and Draco, who were talking with the newly arrived Grangers.

“Had a little run-in with Lockhart,” said Sirius. He handed the man behind the counter the proper amount of coins for the two copies. “Pretentious arse, that one.”

“You handled it well,” said Narcissa.

“Yes, quite well,” said another voice.

It was Lucius Malfoy. 

“Hello, Draco,” said Lucius.

“Hello, Father,” said Draco unenthusiastically.

“How far from grace you’ve fallen, Narcissa,” said Lucius, eyeing Remus and Ginny. “Are the Weasleys pawning their numerous children off on others now?”

“Who I associate with isn’t any of your business, Lucius,” said Narcissa. “And we enjoy the company of their children.”

Lucius sneered, reaching down and picking up Ginny’s cauldron of books, which she’d left on the ground. 

“What are you doing?” asked Remus.

“Hmm,” said Lucius, pulling out Ginny’s copy of History of Magic. “Brand new books. That must be a first for you. Are you running a charity for impoverished redheads as well as werewolves now, Black?”

“Give it back, Lucius,” ordered Remus. 

Lucius put the book back in and held the cauldron out to Remus, releasing the handle before Remus had a full grip on it. Anybody else probably would have dropped it, but Remus had enough strength to hold onto it.

“Are we done?” asked Sirius, wishing Lucius would just give him a reason. 

“See you at work,” said Lucius, turning and leaving the store with an ever-present sneer on his face.

“What was he even doing here?” asked Narcissa. “He didn’t buy any books.”

“Who knows?” asked Sirius. 

Molly finally returned then, with a signed photo of Lockhart. The others tried their best to be supportive and happy for her, but looking at the twinkling teeth of the man in the photograph gave them all a sick feeling.

They finally left the book shop, bid farewell to the Grangers, and made their way to Ollivanders, where Ginny received a yew wand, ten and a half inches, with a unicorn hair core.

From there, they crossed the street to a building that was dark and locked. 

“Here it is,” said Molly, unlocking the door and inviting them all inside. “The new Diagon Alley Daycare.”

The front room was small, containing some chairs and a long desk. 

“This will be Maddy’s desk,” said Molly. She led them past the desk to a corridor. The children stayed in the lobby, talking about Hogwarts and their new supplies. 

Molly showed them each room - there were five classrooms in total, as well as a kitchen and storage room. Upstairs were the offices.

“We’ll only be using three of the rooms for now, of course,” said Molly. “Someday we’ll expand the business and open more classes, but this will do for now.”

“It’s brilliant,” said Remus, admiring the decor. “I’m really happy for the three of you.”

“We couldn’t have done it without you,” said Narcissa. “Giving us the furniture from your homeschool classroom was very thoughtful.”

“You’ll put them to better use than us,” said Sirius.

New voices joined Harry, Ginny, and Draco’s in the lobby.

“That’ll be Arthur and the boys,” said Molly, heading back to the front of the center.

Along with the Weasleys, the Longbottoms and Regulus and Kitty had arrived, as well. Ginny was already telling her brothers about Lucius Malfoy, while Harry was filling Kitty in about Sirius’ face-off with Gilderoy Lockhart.

After catching up with their friends, the Black family waved goodbye and returned to Grimmauld Place.

* * *

Back home, Kitty and Harry went upstairs to organize their school supplies and begin packing their trunks. Regulus headed for the kitchen to start dinner, leaving Sirius and Remus alone. 

Sirius took Remus by the hand and pulled him close. “Do you know how much I love you?”

Remus wrapped his arms around Sirius’ neck. “Not as much as I love you.”

The taller man chuckled and kissed him on the lips. Remus sighed and leaned into him. Knowing how tired the man was, Sirius sat down on the couch and pulled Remus next to him, throwing an arm over his shoulder. 

Light footsteps made him look up to find Harry in the doorway.

“Hey, Prongslet,” said Sirius. “Come ‘ere.”

“Are you tired, Uncle Remus?” asked Harry. 

“A bit,” said Remus, reaching out for the boy. They situated the boy between them, each giving him a kiss on the head. “How are you feeling?”

“Good,” said Harry, laying his head on Remus’ shoulder.

“Have you had any nightmares recently?” asked Sirius, an arm wrapped around both of them.

“No,” said Harry, shaking his head. “I was just wondering about something.”

“What’s that, love?” asked Remus.

“What happened to Kitty the other day?” 

Sirius sighed. “Do you remember when we told you about puberty? How boys become men?”

“Mm-hmm,” said Harry, nodding, but obviously not eager to go into detail.

“Well, girls go through a process of changes, too, except it’s… very, very different from boys. And it’s a little more shocking when it first starts,” Sirius explained. “We’ll tell you more when you’re older.”

“Is she going to be alright?” asked Harry.

“She’ll be fine,” Remus assured her. “There will be times when she feels sick, but it’s normal. Maddy and Ruth have told her and Regulus everything she needs to know.”

This placated the boy for now, as he changed the subject to Ginny, and what house she would be sorted into. They all agreed that she would most likely be in Gryffindor, like the rest of her family. 

“Dinner!” called Regulus from the kitchen. Harry hopped up and waited until both his uncles were following before he dashed down the stairs.


	4. Professor Moon-Moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title is courtesy of my beta reader.

“Got everything?” asked Sirius. 

Harry glanced at the window of the compartment where he'd stored his trunk, and then at the empty cage in his hand. 

Hedwig rode the train with him each time last year, but she hadn't enjoyed it one bit. So, taking pity, Harry had released her to fly to Hogwarts herself. 

He already missed her, even though he knew she would be waiting for him tonight in his dormitory.

“Aye,” said Harry, setting the cage down to tackle them both in a hug. “I love you.”

“We love you, too,” said Sirius. Remus kissed the top of his head. 

“Try not to get in as much trouble this year,” said Regulus, his hand on Kitty's shoulder. “Please.”

“We'll do our best,” said Kitty, saluting him, while Harry grinned sheepishly. “Come on, Harry, time to go!”

Harry didn't really want to board the train yet, but Kitty didn't give him much choice, grabbing his arm and pulling him along behind her. He barely had enough time to grab Hedwig's cage. 

Neville and Ron had already found their compartment, and stashed their trunks away. Kitty joined them for a game of exploding snap.

Harry watched from the window as Molly tearfully said goodbye to her youngest child. Arthur patted his wife's shoulder and waved proudly as Ginny boarded the train with the twins. 

Nearby, Hermione was going through a checklist with her parents, who seemed to be urging her to board the train before it left. Draco was waiting patiently for her, next to his mother, who was half-smiling at the situation.

Behind them was a girl Harry had never seen before, in a light violet dress, her hair whiter than Draco's. He assumed she was a first year, but the lack of awe in her face at the sight of the Hogwarts Express said otherwise. She looked as though she were daydreaming. Knowing he'd learn more about her at school, he looked back at his uncles.

Augusta had struck up conversation with Sirius, about what, Harry could not tell. What he could see was that Remus was nowhere to be seen. Stranger still, Sirius did not seem concerned about his husband's disappearance. Harry shook it off, telling himself that if Sirius wasn’t worried, then he shouldn’t be. 

It took the train’s whistle to get Hermione on the train, and she was immediately followed by Draco. After a quick tour, the twins left Ginny with them, and set off on their own, most likely to find Lee Jordan. 

“Want to play, Harry?” asked Kitty, offering him a hand of Exploding Snap. 

“No, thanks,” said Harry, pulling out his sketchbook. 

Kitty shrugged, turning to Hermione to extend the same offer, but the bushy-haired girl was already reading. Draco and Ginny, however, jumped into the game.

“We’re finally complete,” said Kitty, an hour into the ride. “All seven of us, together again!”

“We’ve been together all summer,” said Draco.

“Yes, yes, but now we’ll be together at Hogwarts for the very first time!” cried Kitty. “Last year we didn’t have Ginny. This year we do. Do you still think you’re going to be a Gryffindor, Gin?”

Ginny shrugged. “I don’t know. I think I’d be happy in any house, except maybe Slytherin…” At Kitty’s aghast expression, she explained, “No offense… I know you and Draco are nice, but that Pansy girl you told me about sounds nasty. You’re her roommate and she’s mean to you. What if I got a roommate like that?”

“That could happen in any of the houses,” said Draco. “Well, except maybe Hufflepuff. They’re a nice lot.”

Ron scoffed “You’ve never had a real conversation with Ernie Macmillan, have you?”

Draco made his thinking face (pursing his lips as his eyes looked up and to the right). “He’s always been rather pleasant with me. What’s he like with you?”

“Pompous,” said Neville. “But he’s not mean like Nott or Parkinson.”

They all nodded in agreement just as they heard the sound of a trolley rolling down the corridor.

Since Draco was closest to the door, he slid it open and, accepting everyone’s coins, purchased the sweets and pumpkin juice everyone wanted. He thanked the trolley lady and set their snacks on Kitty’s trunk, which was once again being used as a table.

Harry sipped at his pumpkin juice and continued to sketch, not really thinking about what he was drawing at this point. He was already missing home, wishing he could have had one more hug. 

“Is that Remus and Sirius?” asked Kitty, her voice quiet underneath the conversation of their friends.

Harry looked up at her, and then back at his drawing. He had indeed drawn Sirius and Remus, holding hands and smiling up at them. 

“Aye, I think I’m going to send this one to them,” said Harry. “Kitty, did you notice earlier… after we boarded the train, Remus just… disappeared?”

Kitty gave him a confused look, so he quickly explained what he'd seen. The others were listening at this point, too.

“I'm sure he's fine,” said Hermione. “Perhaps he went home early to start dinner?”

“At eleven in the morning?” Asked Ron.

“Lunch, then,” Hermione said. “Or, maybe he's still tired from the full moon, and went home to rest.”

Ginny smiled. “He's alright, Harry. I promise.”

“How do you know?” Asked Draco, also concerned about his uncle.

“I just do,” said Ginny simply. 

“You know something we don't,” concluded Harry. “Don't you?”

“Of course I do,” said Ginny, her grin turning mischievous.

This only made the others more curious, but Ginny was as stubborn as Ron, and refused to budge. Eventually, they gave up. They would soon be at Hogwarts, and took turns changing into their robes (girls first, then boys).

“Remember, Gin,” said Ron. “Don't follow us. First years go with Hagrid to the school.”

“Are you going to tell me how we get there?” Asked Ginny, annoyed.

Kitty smirked. “You'll find out.”  
**********************  
“Weasley, Ginevra,” called Professor McGonagall, reading from the list of first years. 

The Deputy Headmistress smiled as the hat almost immediately shouted, “GRYFFINDOR!”

All of the Gryffindors cheered as yet another Weasley joined their ranks. Most were eager to see what this one was made of, and probably hoping she wasn’t like Percy.

Harry high-fived her as soon as she sat down. “Welcome to the house of lions!”

Ginny grinned at him. “Thanks, Harry.”

“Who is that?” asked Dean, pointing up at the teacher table.

The second and first years turned to see that a previously empty seat next to Professor Flitwick had been filled.

“Uncle Remus?” said Harry, shocked. 

As if sensing Harry’s eyes, Remus turned away from Flitwick for a moment and spotted Harry at the Gryffindor table. He smiled widely at him, and then turned to the Slytherin table, most likely to find Kitty. 

“That’s your uncle?” asked Seamus. “What’s he doing here?”

“Ginny,” said Harry. The ginger turned to him. “Why is Remus here?”

Ginny looked as though she were deciding whether to answer him.

It was at that moment that Professor Dumbledore stood, and like magic, the hall was silent.

“Welcome back to another year at Hogwarts,” said Dumbledore. “As always, I would like to say a few words before we begin our delicious feast. 

“First, I must once again remind you all that, as the name suggests, the Forbidden Forest is forbidden to all students.

“Second, three new items have been added to the List of Banned Items on Mr. Filch’s office. Exploding bubbles, though rather colorful, are no longer allowed.

“And, finally, I am sure you have noticed the newest member of our staff. Here to fill the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts is Professor Remus Lupin.”

It was the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs who burst into applause almost at once. A small group of Slytherins, led by Kitty and Draco, of course, join the chorus, too. Meanwhile, the Ravenclaws looked dumbfounded by the enthusiasm from the others, but clapped nonetheless.

Remus stood and bowed before quickly sitting back down and exchanging pleased glances with McGonagall and Flitwick.

When Dumbledore raised his hand, they all went silent again. “You have many eager students awaiting you, it seems, Professor Lupin. Now, without further ado, let us fill our empty stomachs and celebrate the beginning of another great year!”

“Wonder why the Hufflepuffs were so excited,” said Neville.

“Are you joking?” asked Harry. “Merric and Embry have practically convinced the entire house that Remus is a god or something. He’s their hero. If it weren’t for him, the Heathers twins never would have come to Hogwarts.”

“Why not?” asked a first year, who was quite obviously new to the magical world.

“Because they’re werewolves,” said Ginny nonchalantly. “And people didn’t use to trust them much. But now, thanks to Harry’s uncles, they’re shown the respect they deserve.”

“So werewolves aren’t bad?” the girl asked.

“Not at all,” said Ginny. “Well, you wouldn’t want to meet them on a full moon, but all the rest of the time they’re just normal people.”

“That’s ama-”

A flash of light nearly blinded them both.

“What was that?” asked Dean, sitting a few seats from Harry and the only second-year who wasn’t rubbing his eyes at that moment.

“Oy, who caused that bright light?” called Percy’s voice from down the table.

“It was Colin,” said one of the first year boys. “He’s got a camera.”

“Doesn’t he know it’s rude to take pictures of people without permission?” asked Hermione. 

“Sorry,” said Colin. “But I just can’t believe I’m sitting at the same table as Harry Potter!”

Harry rolled his eyes. “That doesn’t mean you get to take pictures. Please don’t do it again.”

Colin nodded, but Harry wasn’t sure he really got the message.

Ginny nudged Harry in the side to get his attention. "Has it occurred to you that Remus and Lupin both have to do with wolves and the moon?"

"No, that thought never crossed my mind..." 

"Think about it for a second..." said Ginny. When Harry said nothing, she whispered, "He's Professor Moon-Moon."

Harry nearly spit out his pumpkin juice from laughing.

Shortly after this, they were dismissed to their dorms, and the new fifth-year prefects led the first years away. Everyone else began filing out. Harry and Kitty, however, both waited until the hall was empty, and then bolted straight for Remus.

It took Remus to catch his breath after being tackled in a double-hug.

“Why didn’t you tell us?!” cried Kitty.

“I wanted it to be a surprise,” said Remus.

Harry hugged him again. “Best. Surprise. Ever!” 

“I’m glad you’re excited,” said Remus. “I am, too.”

“You’re going to be everyone’s favorite teacher!” cried Harry. “I just know it!”

“Thank you, Harry,” said Remus. “Now you both know I’m not going to go easy on you. In fact, I’ll have higher expectations for the two of you than anyone else.”

“We know,” said Kitty. “And we’ll call you ‘Professor’ when we’re in class.”

“I appreciate that,” said Remus. “You know I love you, but it’s about time you both went to bed.”

“Are you going to stay here at Hogwarts like us?” asked Harry.

“No,” said Remus. “Dumbledore and I worked it out so that I can go home most nights. I only have to stay for night duty twice a week. I’ll be here some weekends, too.”

“That’s good,” said Harry. “Uncle Sirius will miss you if you don’t go home.”

“Yes, and I’ll miss him,” said Remus. He hugged Harry once more and kissed the top of his head. “I love you.”

“Love you, too,” said Harry.

After Kitty received one last hug as well, they made their way out to the Entrance Hall, up (or down, if you’re Kitty) to their dormitories, where they each took a turn mirror chatting with Sirius and Regulus before going to sleep.


	5. Disappointment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smol chapter.

The next morning was a Wednesday, which, after receiving their schedules, was rather unfortunate.

“Bloody hell,” muttered Ron. “We won’t have Remus until Monday?”

Harry nodded, equally disappointed. “At least we only have Charms and Magical Theory today.”

“And two periods of study hall,” said Hermione brightly.

“Brilliant,” said Ron, no more excited about books than a niffler about a dull spoon.

After breakfast, they set off for the library, where Madam Pince eyeballed them for a whole hour, making sure they were studying. Harry found it easy to ignore her usually, but without having gone to any of his classes yet, he had nothing specific study. He sufficed himself with reading the first chapter in the Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2. 

“Finally,” said Ron when the bell rang, signalling them to go to their Double Charms class with the Ravenclaws. Kitty and Draco trodded off to Transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs.

Flitwick’s class was just as interesting as the previous year, even more so because they were working on more difficult magic. Since they had some experience under their belt, the tiny professor started them off right away with charming socks to fold themselves.

After lunch, they had another hour of study hall, followed by Magical Theory. Professor Hatterman began the class by telling them it would be their last year with him, as only first and second years took the class. He then introduced them to their first lesson: magic in the natural world. 

“Last year, we learned about the possible origins of magic in people, and how magic works for us. This year, we will focus on the more in-depth study of magic in plants and animals,” Hatterman said, moving about the classroom in his top hat as he spoke. “Open your books to page one hundred and eleven.”

All the rest of the week, students from other years came up to Harry to tell him his uncle was an amazing teacher. Harry took the comments politely, but inside, he felt like screaming, wishing he could be in Defense Against the Dark Arts already. But there was nothing he could do.

* * *

“Hiya, Hagrid!” cried Kitty as she bounded up to him outside his hut Friday afternoon. She, Harry, and Ron had brought Ginny for her first tea-time with Hagrid. 

Although none of them really liked the tea and rock cakes that Hagrid served, they did like Hagrid himself, and had made it a monthly tradition to visit his hut at least one Friday a month.

“The littlest Weasley!” Hagrid said. “Heard you were sorted into Gryffindor, like your brothers.”

Ginny smiled shyly and nodded, which Harry thought was odd. Ginny had known Hagrid for a few years, and had never acted timid around him. 

“Well, come on in, you lot! Tea’s near ready, I think,” said Hagrid, opening the large door to his hut and waving them all in. They did, and Harry quickly forgot about Ginny’s quiet behavior as he and his friends took turns recounting their week to Hagrid.


	6. Seek and Keep

Harry, Kitty, and Draco sat at attention near the front of the classroom, their copies of _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_ , open in front of them.

Remus, or rather, Professor Lupin, had not yet made an appearance.

“Oh, look at that,” said Pansy. “Your werewolf uncle didn’t even last a week.”

Harry glared at her.

“Perhaps,” said a voice from the back corner. Their heads whipped around to see Professor Lupin sitting in a chair in the corner, watching them all with amusement. He looked as though he’d been sitting there for quite some time.

“Or, perhaps, if you were all a little more observant, you wouldn’t have to sit there with nothing to do for so long,” Lupin said. “Each of you walked right past me as you came in.”

He stood up and walked to the front of the classroom.

“Miss Parkinson, is it?” he said, looking at the now wide-eyed Slytherin. “Your comment, as I’m sure you’re aware, was disrespectful. However, since it was your first offense, I’ll only be taking one point from Slytherin.”

The other Slytherins looked relieved.

“But know this,” he continued, his voice calm but stern. “Any further behavior like that will not be taken lightly.”

“Yes, sir,” said Pansy, looking down. 

“Now, I can see all of you could use some practice in the area of observation,” said Professor Lupin. “Books away, please. We’ll need to leave the classroom for this lesson.”

“Why?” asked Theodore Nott. “What’s so important about observing stuff?”

Lupin gave him a small smile. “An excellent question, Mr. Nott.”

Nott looked surprised. “How do you know my name?”

“You take after your father,” said the professor. “Who I went to school with. Tell me, how do you think I noticed that?”

Kitty’s hand shot up, and Lupin nodded to her. “Through the power of observation!”

Professor Lupin nodded, amused. “Exactly, Miss Black. Luckily for all of you, not noticing my presence in the back of the room didn’t lead to any danger, but had I been a dark wizard with nefarious intentions, you’d probably… all be dead now.”

The rest of the class stared at him in fear for a moment, as though realizing. Then, one hand rose.

“Yes, Mr…?”

“Dean Thomas, sir,” said Dean. “Isn’t your husband an Auror?”

Several of the students blinked at Dean and their new professor. It was a rather awkward question, after all.

“Yes, he is,” said Lupin, not missing a beat. “And many times, he’s stopped his partner from walking into danger by noticing small details that others may overlook. Although it is not magic, observation is a valuable skill that can assist in every part of your life. Now, grab your things and follow me.”

For the rest of the hour, the class followed Professor Lupin around the castle and practiced observing things. Harry noticed a strange creature soaring above the Forbidden Forest, which Hermione identified as a hippogriff. A few minutes later, they all heard a quiet snigger behind a door. It was Peeves, come to play a trick on them, but Professor Lupin magicked his water balloons away, and armed the students with them. Peeves set off like a piston. 

When the bell rang, most of the class didn’t notice at first.

“Where are you going, Blaise?” asked Tracey Davis, one of Kitty’s roommates.

“The bell rang,” said Blaise. “We need to get to our next class.”

“Ten points to Slytherin,” said Professor Lupin. “For noticing what no one else did, Mr. Zabini.”

For a moment, the ends of Blaise’s mouth turned up a little, and Harry realized he was smiling. He’d never seen Blaise smile before, but Remus tended to have that effect on people.

Harry and Kitty both hung back while the rest of the Gryffindors and Slytherins disappeared around the corner. 

“That was great, Uncle Remus!” cried Harry, tackling him in a hug. Kitty, too, wrapped her arms around him.

Remus laughed and hugged them back. “Thank you, Harry, Kitty. I hope your classmates enjoyed it as much as you did.”

“They did,” Kitty assured him. 

With a grin, Remus let them go. “Now hurry along, or you’ll be late for your next class.”

* * *

“Good luck, Harry!” cried Hermione, before following Draco and the others up to the stands.

Harry took a deep breath, inspected his broomstick one last time, and then joined the line of Gryffindors that were trying out for the Quidditch team. He was the only second year in the group, and there were no first years at all, making him the youngest.

The Captain, Oliver Wood, tested them by group. The only position that wasn’t open was Keeper (Oliver’s spot). 

He began with Chasers, since they were the largest group. Watching them, Harry could tell that the newcomers were no match for last year’s trio - Alicia, Angelina, and Katie. 

After that, the Beaters each had a go.

“There’s no beating Fred and George,” said Katie, standing nearby with the other two girls. “Pun intended.”

Angelina and Alicia laughed.

Finally, it was the Seeker’s turns. For this part, Oliver had Angelina throw small, mundane balls as far and hard as she could (she had the best arm of all of them), and the Seekers had to catch each one - best out of six. 

Harry was the only one who caught all six of them.

“You did it!” cried Kitty, tackling him in a hug just as his feet touched the ground. “You’re a shoe-in, Harry!”

The other four prospective Seekers landed, grumbling to themselves, and walked away.

“Suppose they’re not used to being bettered by a second year,” said Alicia. “Well done, Potter.”

“Right,” said Oliver, landing and using his ‘captain’ voice. “Well done, everyone. I’ll post the names of the new team members on Monday.”

“The suspense is killing us,” said Fred sarcastically. Oliver gave him a sharp look, and Fred feigned a look of fear.

“Dismissed!” Oliver announced, though most of the Gryffindors had already left. The rest of them ignored him.

“I could use a nice shower,” said Angelina. “Hey, Weasleys, isn’t that your friend?”

Fred and George both followed her gaze, and saw a familiar girl with chocolate-colored hair walking towards them, an ever-present book in her arms. 

“Oy, Arden!” cried Fred. “Where’ve you been?”

“Reading,” said Arden. 

“You didn’t watch the tryouts?” asked George.

“Why? Did Wood find replacements for the two of you?” asked Arden in a teasing tone.

“Replace us?” George repeated.

“Never!” cried Fred. They each threw an arm over her shoulder and led her off to the castle.

“Fraternizing with the competition,” tutted Oliver with a shake of his head.

“Really, Oliver?” said Angelina, quirking an eyebrow at him. “They’re best friends. Good luck convincing them to not ‘fraternize.’”

Oliver shrugged and marched off the pitch toward the broomshed.

“What did Oliver mean?” asked Neville.

It was Katie, who answered. “Greyson is a Chaser on the Ravenclaw team, which makes her the competition. Oliver’s worried for nothing, really. Arden doesn’t come to our practices and spy on us or anything.”

“Yeah, but she was welcome to the tryouts,” said Angelina. “That’s why Fred’s annoyed.”

Alicia, Angelina, and Katie broke into a fit of giggles, and walked away.

Harry turned to Kitty. “Your turn is tomorrow. Do you want to practice before we head in?”

Kitty nodded and bounded after Oliver to get her broom from the shed.

* * *

Kitty zoomed past her teammate and halted in midair, turning her body and swinging the Beater’s bat at the oncoming Bludger, sending it hurtling straight at a player on the opposing team. He barely dodged it.

“Not bad, Black,” said Captain Marcus Flint moments later when they landed. “For such a tiny thing, you’re quite strong.”

“Good aim, too,” said Myles Bletchley. “Thought you were all bark, but seems you’ve got a bite, too.”

Both of the older boys laughed at their jokes, and Kitty rolled her eyes. “I try,” she said, handing the bat to the next hopeful in line.

* * *

The following week, the captains posted the teams in the common rooms.

Harry hadn't even made it to the wall before the others began congratulating him. 

“I made it?” Harry asked, as a fifth year allowed him to slip to the front of the pack. 

He read the list quickly

_1 Keeper - Oliver Wood_   
_2 Beater - Fred Weasley_   
_3 Beater - George Weasley_   
_4 Chaser - Katie Bell_   
_5 Chaser - Alicia Spinnet_   
_6 Chaser - Angelina Johnson_   
_7 Seeker - Harry potter_

“Oy, why’s your name first?” asked George to his brother. “That’s favoritism, that is.”

“Or Wood put your names alphabetically,” Hermione offered. “F comes before G.”

The others in the crowd laughed as Fred and George ran back to the dorms. Moments later, a yell could be heard from above, followed by several thumps and Oliver Wood himself storming into the common room and making a brave escape through the portrait hole. The twins skidded to a halt as the portrait hole closed in front of him.

“You can run but you can’t hide!” cried George.

Harry rolled his eyes and exited through the portrait hole, followed by Neville, Ron and Hermione, and headed . 

“Where’s Ginny?” asked Ron to Hermione.

“I’m not sure,” Hermione replied. “Her roommates said she’d already left.”

“She must be at breakfast already,” said Neville.

But Ginny wasn’t in the great hall when they arrived. Although Ron shrugged it off, Harry could tell he was a little worried.

Kitty and Draco ran over as soon as they sat down. 

“Well?” said Kitty.

Harry grinned proudly. “You’re looking at the new Gryffindor Seeker.”

“Brilliant!” cried Kitty. “I made the team, too. Well, the Slytherin team, I mean. As a beater, of course.”

Harry high-fived her before she and Draco returned to their table. He looked up at the teacher table, to see Remus watching him. The werewolf professor raised his goblet to Harry. Harry grinned sheepishly and turned to Neville, who was trying to get his attention.

Ginny had just sat down next to Hermione, looking quite pale and tired.

“Where’ve you been?” asked Ron, trying to hide his concern, but sounding accusatory instead. 

Ginny shrugged, and mumbled something about the loo. Ron exchanged glances with Harry and the others as Ginny gathered a tiny bit of food onto her plate. 

“We were worried,” said Hermione. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“I’m fine,” Ginny said, exasperated.

“Are you still coming to our Fossils and Flames session on Friday?” asked Neville.

“And the first S.P.E.W. meeting of the year on Sunday?” added Hermione.

Ginny scooped a little more food onto her plate. “Wouldn’t miss it. Oh, well done on becoming Seeker, Harry.”

“Thanks,” said Harry, relieved that Ginny hadn’t lost her appetite completely. He decided it would be best to mention their concerns about Ginny to Remus later. He would know what to do. With that in mind, he and his friends gathered their things and set out for their first class of the day.


	7. Deathday Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are happening.
> 
> Some good.
> 
> Some bad.
> 
> Some weird.

“Where’s your sister?” asked Katie, as the Gryffindor team landed on the pitch.

Harry gave her an odd look. “Sister?”

“You mean cousin,” said Angelina. 

Harry “Oh, Kitty? She’s home. Tonight’s the full moon, and she doesn’t spend it at school.”

“Oh, right,” Katie nodded.

Oliver landed just then. “Great practice, team. If we keep this up, we’re sure to cream Slytherin in a few weeks.”

“Does practice have to be so late?” asked Fred, looking up at the starry sky. The moon was low on the horizon.

“We’ve got to be ready for any conditions in a game,” said Oliver. “Including darkness.”

The others stared at him.

It was Angelina who called him out. “You… couldn’t book the pitch during the daytime, could you?”

Oliver glared at the floor. “Flint took all of the best time slots.”

“Of course he did,” said Katie bitterly.

Harry followed his teammates back to the changing rooms, and twenty minutes later, he trudged into the castle. The moon was slowing rising now, and Harry couldn’t help but think about his uncles and cousin, all going through the most painful of transformations. 

And Sirius would, of course, be transforming into Padfoot to keep Remus and Regulus company. Sometimes it bothered Harry that, out of his whole family, he was the only one who didn’t take part in the full moon. But every time the four of them returned, exhausted and sometimes bruised, he realized that he was the lucky one.

“Come… come to me… Let me rip you…” 

Harry flinched and looked around, the cold voice startling him from his thoughts.

But he was alone. 

“Who’s there?” asked Harry, nervously. 

“Let me tear you… Let me kill you…”

“Peeves… is that you?” Harry whispered.

“Kill… kill…”

Heart beating fast, Harry dashed up the nearby staircase.

“AGH!” Harry shouted in surprise as his feet slipped out from under him. He landed on his bottom in a large puddle. 

“Ow…” he muttered, standing up and sighing at his soaked robes.

“Hmm… that was quite a fall,” said a voice behind him.

Harry nearly fell over again as he whirled around.

But it was only Nearly Headless Nick.

When Harry finally caught his breath, he said, “Nick, you scared me.”

“I was about to say the same about you,” said the ghost. “There I was, reflecting on my near five hundred years as a spectre, when a cloaked figure comes barrelling down the corridor. If one could die twice, well…”

“Sorry,” said Harry. “I just… heard a creepy voice and… ran for it… H-have you heard anything strange lately?”

Nick looked surprised. “A voice? I’m afraid I’ve heard nothing of the sort. It is close to Halloween, though. Perhaps it was a student trying to prank you. Or Peeves?”

Harry nodded. “Maybe.”

“YOU!” 

Nick and Harry turned to see Filch tromping towards them. 

“Look at this mess you’ve made!” The crabby caretaker motioned to the water on the floor.

“What? But I didn’t-” 

“I’ve got you now,” Filch said. “Caught you red-handed.”

“But I didn’t do anything!” cried Harry.

“Then how do you explain all this water from the girl’s lavatory?” Filch demanded.

“Actually, Mr. Filch,” said Nick. “I can vouch for Harry’s innocence. The water was already here when Harry came by, causing him to slip.”

Filch’s scowl moved from Harry to Nick, and back to Harry again. “Why are you up this late anyways?”

“Quidditch practice,” said Harry honestly. “Can I go now? I’d like to shower and put on dry clothes.”

“Fine,” Filch snarled. “Get on outta here, and don’t let me catch you here again.”

Harry beelined for the common room, hit the showers, and then his bed, exhausted from the whole evening.

* * *

“Good morrow, Harry,” Nick greeted him the next morning as he arrived in the entrance hall with his friends.

“Morning, Nick,” Harry yawned. 

Nick glided alongside them as they walked. “I meant to tell you, before we were rudely interrupted by Mr. Filch, about my Deathday party on Halloween.”

Harry stopped. “Deathday party?”

“Yes,” said Nick. “The anniversary of my death.”

“You throw a party for that?” asked Ron.

Nick gave him an annoyed look. “Indeed we do. This is a momentous occasion, as it is the five hundredth anniversary.”

“Oh,” said Harry. “That’s… impressive.”

“Why, thank you,” said Nick. “And you know, I would be honoured if you and your friends attended. Everybody who was anybody will be there.”

Harry blanched. “Oh, uh… thanks… I’ll have to talk to Kitty and Draco… We’ll get back to you.”

“Wonderful!” cried Nick, giving them the time and place before floating away with a beam in his transparent face.

“You didn’t actually say yes,” said Neville. “Why is he so happy?”

“No idea,” said Harry. “But I sort of owe him for saving me from Filch last night so I suppose I’ll go. You lot don’t have to.”

“Are you joking?” cried Hermione. “This is the chance of a lifetime! How many living folk do you know that have attended a deathday party?”

“None,” said Ron, leading the way to the Gryffindor table.

Two tables over, Draco sat with Blaise. Neither Kitty nor Remus had returned yet, which was no surprise to anyone by this point.

“Which is why we absolutely must accept this invitation!” Hermione insisted. “Just think of how happy Sir Nicholas will be, and what new things about ghosts we might learn.”

Harry shrugged. “I’ll be there, at least for a little while. I don’t want to miss the whole feast.”

“I’ll save you some sweets,” said Ron.

“I’d like to sit this one out, too,” Neville admitted. “It’s down in the dungeons and, well, I don’t want to be anywhere near Snape’s office unless I have to be.”

Harry patted him on the shoulder in understanding. 

In study hall later, Harry invited Draco to the party. The young Malfoy looked excited.

“This is a brilliant opportunity!” Draco whispered. “Do you suppose there’ll be food? What do you think ghosts eat? Do they eat?”

“I guess we’ll find out,” said Harry, though Draco didn’t seem to hear him. 

Kitty returned that night, and listened to Harry’s story through the mirror. She was the only one he’d given all of the details of the night to.

“A voice?” said Kitty. “That’s creepy. Hopefully Nick was right about it being a prank.”

“Yeah,” said Harry.

“Anyways, the Deathday party sounds fun, or at the very least, interesting. I’ll go if you’re going,” she said. “The Halloween feast won’t be the same without us, though.”

Harry snickered. “At least we didn’t have a prank planned.”

“With Remus as our professor? No way we’d get away with it,” said Kitty, making a face.

Noticing how tired she was, Harry quickly bid his cousin good night, and crawled into his own bed.

* * *

“I wonder what it was made of,” said Hermione. 

“I’m still trying to decide whether it was a cake or a pie,” said Draco. “Too bad we couldn’t taste it.”

“It didn’t look or smell very appetizing,” Hermione admitted. “But the ghosts seemed to enjoy it.”

“I know!” cried Draco. “I can’t believe that’s how a ghost-”

“Shh!” hissed Harry, stepped towards the wall of the corridor. 

“What’s wrong?” whispered Kitty.

“Kill… kill…”

“That voice again…” said Harry, walking along the wall.

“Come… come to me…”

“This way!”

Harry broke into a run in the direction of the voice, his friends behind him. Down a corridor and up the stairs they went. Somewhere on the second floor, they skidded to a stop. 

“Oh, my,” gasped Hermione.

Kitty stifled a scream with her hand.

In dripping red letters upon the wall were the words:

_The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir beware._

“Is that… blood?” asked Draco, paler than usual.

Kitty nodded mutely.

Next to the message hung a stiff four-legged figure.

“That’s Mrs. Norris,” said Harry, taking a step forward. He was vaguely aware that the floor was wet. “What’s happened to her?”

At that moment, they heard the doors of the great hall burst open, and the sounds of students and teachers leaving downstairs. But they all felt as stiff as the poor cat.

“Harry, Kitty?” said a familiar voice, waking the boy from his stupor. “What are you all doing here?”

“Remus!” Harry and Kitty cried, running to him. There were other students there, mostly Gryffindors, all curious.

“Who did this?!” cried a hoarse voice. “Who did this to my cat?!”

Filch had arrived, and spotted Mrs. Norris, but seemed to take no notice of the blood on the wall.

Dumbledore was there in moments, sending the rest of the students away.

“That’s him, Headmaster!” cried Filch, pointing at Harry. “He’s the one that’s done it! Caught him in the corridors the other night, and now he’s killed my cat!”

“I didn’t!” cried Harry.

“Mr. Filch, Harry would never do something like this,” said Remus. “None of these children would, or could, for that matter.”

Harry looked around. Hermione and Draco were off to one side, and Ron and Neville had managed to stick around despite Snape and McGonagall’s efforts to shepherd everyone out of the corridor. Ginny stood behind Ron, looking disheveled and white as Draco.

“I concur with Professor Lupin,” said Dumbledore. “No second year could have done this. You will be glad to know she is not dead, only petrified.”

“If he didn’t do it, then who did?” asked Filch, and Harry thought the man was actually sobbing. He felt bad for him, knowing he would feel the same if it was Hedwig on that wall. 

“Professors Lupin and Snape, would you please escort the children to their common rooms?” asked Dumbledore. 

“Of course,” said Remus. 

Kitty and Draco followed Snape downstairs, while Remus led the others in the opposite direction.

“Are you alright?” asked Remus, once they were out of earshot. “Where were you tonight?” 

“Sir Nicholas’ deathday party,” Hermione answered.

“Deathday party?” Remus repeated.

They quickly explained about Nick and the invitation.

“I see,” said Remus as they reached the portrait hole. 

Hermione recited the password and she, Neville, Ron, and Ginny bid Remus good night before slipping inside. Harry hung back a moment.

“There’s something else you want to tell me, isn’t there?” asked Remus.

Harry nodded. “It started on the full moon.” 

He explained about the voice he’d heard that night, and earlier.

“And it led you to that message?” asked Remus. Harry nodded.

“What did I hear?” asked Harry. “And why didn’t the others hear it?”

Remus looked deep in thought. “I don’t know exactly, but Sirius and Regulus may have some ideas. I want you to be extra careful from now on, Harry. Try not to be alone. And don’t wander the corridors at night. Understand?”

Harry nodded. “I understand. But, Remus, what is the Chamber of Secrets?”

Remus bit his lips, as though considering whether to tell him or not. “It’s not something that should be trifled with. Last time it was opened… a student died.”

They were both silent for a moment, and Remus placed his hand on Harry’s shoulder.

“Promise me you won’t go anywhere alone.”

Harry met his eyes, and said honestly, “I promise.”

* * *

Harry glanced at the twenty-sided die he’d just rolled, and smirked at Draco. “I got a twelve. Your Norwegian Ridgebacks are toast.”

Draco sighed. “You win this time, Potter. Just wait ‘til my T-Rex is full-grown. Then you’re going to wish it was just the Ridgebacks.”

“You started without us!” cried Kitty as she and Hermione entered the empty classroom, the headquarters of S.P.E.W. and the best place to play Fossils and Flames.

“Don’t worry,” said Draco. “We didn’t touch your herds.”

Kitty carefully examined her legion of dragons and dinosaurs, and then nodded in satisfaction.

“Yeah, but Harry just demolished Draco’s pack of Norberts,” said Neville, and the others laughed at his joke.

“Well, are you lot going to tell us what Binns said?” asked Kitty.

Earlier that day, Hermione had been brave enough to interrupt Professor Binns’ endless droning lecture during History of Magic to ask a question burning in everyone’s minds. Though he was caught off guard at first, the ghost professor had reluctantly explained the history and lore of the Chamber of Secrets.

Hermione cleared her throat. “According to Professor Binns, the Chamber of Secrets was built by Salazar Slytherin somewhere within the school. And there’s apparently a deadly monster living inside it.”

“What?” cried Kitty, disappointed that her house’s founder had anything to do with it.

“But where is it?” asked Draco.

“No one knows,” said Harry. “It’s location was known only to Slytherin himself, and he was the only one who could open it.”

“No one has ever found it?” asked Kitty.

“Actually, someone did,” said Hermione. “Fifty years ago, the Chamber of Secrets was opened.”

“And someone died,” said Harry sadly, remembering what Remus had told him.

“That’s horrible,” said Kitty. 

“What did the message mean by 'enemies of the heir?’” asked Neville.

“Well, the heir would be the heir to Slytherin,” Harry explained. “Someone who is descended from him who could open the chamber.

“I suppose an enemy of Slytherin's heir would be a Muggleborn,” said Hermione, bitterly. “This monster is supposed to kill all of the Muggleborns in the school.”

“That explains why Filch was the first target,” said Neville. “He's a squib, which to some purebloods is a lot worse than being a Muggleborn.”

Draco looked thoughtful. “But hold on a moment - Professor Dumbledore said that Mrs. Norris wasn’t dead, only petrified. if the monster is supposed to kill, then why didn't it? Why bother petrifying the cat when it could have finished her off?”

Harry’s eyes widened, realizing that Draco was right. But without knowing how the monster killed, there was no way to know how Mrs. Norris survived.

Or how to keep themselves safe.


	8. Moonlight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story has dropped down to 15 chapters, as I accidentally ended up putting two together (please don't ask how because I'm not sure myself).
> 
> It is 12:11 AM and I'm running on nothing but caffeine, gummy worms, and Brian David Gilbert.
> 
> So, I hope you enjoy and please leave a comment.

“You really should eat,” said Hermione. “A bit of toast, perhaps?”

“Or drink some pumpkin juice,” said Ron. “You’ve got to have something on your stomach, mate.”

“I’m not hungry,” said Harry.

“I don’t know why you’re so worried,” said Hermione. “You’ve been practicing for weeks.”

“You'll be great,” Neville assured him.

But Harry was too nauseous to take their words to heart. Some part of him wondered if Kitty was feeling the same way.

Long before the other students left the castle, the captains of the Slytherin and Gryffindor teams led their teammates out to the changing rooms to prepare for the first game of the year. 

“Harry, Kitty!” Cried Remus before the two of them went into separate changing rooms.

“Uncle Remus!” Cried Kitty, embracing him, while Harry attempted to smile, but ended up grimacing instead.

“Are you alright, Prongslet?” Remus asked as he let go of Kitty. 

Harry nodded meekly.

Remus pulled him into a tight hug, and Harry felt himself relax just a little bit.

“You know, Sirius and your father were nervous before their first game, too,” Remus told him, releasing him.

“They were?” Harry asked, finally able to speak.

Remus nodded. “I couldn't get either of them to eat anything. They were afraid they'd puke it back up.”

Harry understood that feeling perfectly.

“But they didn't need to worry, because something incredible happened,” Remus continued. 

“What?” asked Kitty. “What was it?”

“Sirius told me that the moment they mounted their brooms, and took off, their fears simply washed away. They felt so at home in the air that they were able to overcome all of their doubts and worry,” Remus explained. “They played a perfect game that day.”

“That's brilliant!” Cried Kitty. 

“And you know,” said Remus. “So long as you're doing your part for your team, and you're having fun, it doesn't matter which team wins or loses.”

Harry nodded, leaning in for one more hug, just as the students began filing out of the school and making their way down to the pitch.

“You'd both better get dressed,” said Remus. “I'll be up in the stands.”

* * *

“AND AFTER ANOTHER FILTHY CHEATING TACTIC FROM THE SLYTHERIN CHASERS-”

“Jordan!”

“Sorry, Professor,” Lee cleared his throat. “AFTER SOME UNFORTUNATE CIRCUMSTANCES, GRYFFINDOR IS DOWN A CHASER. PENALTY TO GRYFFINDOR, WHICH CHASER ANGELINA JOHNSON PUTS AWAY EASILY.”

Harry gritted his teeth, wishing there was some way to stop Flint and his two cronies. Even Kitty looked disgusted, and he imagined that Flint would get an earful from her later.

“THE SCORE IS NOW 60-10 TO SLYTHERIN. GRYFFINDOR CHASERS SPINNET AND JOHNSON HAVE A LOT OF CATCHING UP TO DO IF THEY INTEND TO WIN THIS GAME.”

Harry met Wood's gaze, and knew that the only way they were going to win without another player being taken out was by Harry catching the Golden Snitch.

And just like that, he spotted it - a tiny blur of gold just below the teacher stands. Harry zoomed towards it, trying not to blink so it couldn't disappear on him.

The Slytherin Seeker chased after him but he was no match for Harry's speed and skill.

As he drew closer to the stands, he could just make out the proud grin on Remus’ face. He reached out…

…And plucked the little winged ball out of the air inches from Snape's face. 

“Sorry, Professor,” said Harry, stopping in mid-air in front of him.

Snape sighed and waved him away. 

It was then that Harry realized Lee Jordan's voice was still blaring across the stands.

“POTTER'S CAUGHT THE SNITCH, ENDING THE GAME WITH THE SCORE AT 160-60. GRYFFINDOR WINS!”

A roar rose up from all but one of the stands as the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws all cheered at Slytherin's first loss in five years.

Harry held up the snitch proudly, and then glanced at Remus again. The normally quiet wizard was cheering and clapping and high-fiving Professor Hatterman (who had been a Gryffindor as well). He looked up at Harry and punched the air. 

Harry blushed and flew down to the ground, where his teammates tackled him in a hug.

Hermione, Ron, and Draco joined them just then, too, all with supportive words. Neville suddenly had the strength of ten Neville's, picking Harry up in a bear hug before putting him back down. 

“I knew you'd do great!” 

“Thanks, Nev,” said Harry. 

A sharp voice caught their attention, and they looked over at the Slytherins. Flint, red in the face, was in a heated argument with Kitty. They were quickly broken up by Snape, who gave them both a quiet glare.

Kitty harrumphed and started to walk away.

“Where do you think you're going?” demanded Flint, held back by Snape's arm in front of him.

“To congratulate my cousin!” Kitty shot back. “And to see if Katie is okay after what you three did to her!”

Flint growled, but Snape had taken him by the arm and was forcing him back to the changing rooms, perhaps to do exactly what Kitty had done, but in a more Snapish manner. 

Kitty ran over to Harry and hugged him.

“Well done, Harry!” 

“Thanks,” said Harry. “And you, too. I saw those bludgers you shot. You almost bested Fred and George.”

“Now, let's not get carried away,” said Fred, with a small chuckle.

“Beginner's luck,” added George. “Besides, we were too busy saving Katie from crashing a hundred feet to the ground.”

“Did you see Flint's face?” Asked Oliver. “He was livid. Hope he doesn't kick you off the team, Black. You've got more decency than the rest of them put together.”

Kitty blushed at Wood.

“Why is Flint even surprised?” Asked Hermione. “You're the girl who stepped on the Head Boy in your first year. Did he expect you to be fine with them cheating?”

Kitty shrugged. “He deserved it. And so did the Head Boy.”

“Come on, then, you lot,” said Wood. “We've got to make sure Katie is alright.”

After they were all changed, Harry's friends followed the team up to the Hospital Wing. 

Katie was wide awake, her arm in a sling, looking positively bored.

“It's about time!” She cried, spotting them all. “I heard it all. Well done, Harry!”

“Thanks,” said Harry. “Are you alright?”

“Me? I'll be fine. Madam Pomfrey's already fixed my arm,” Katie said. “She wants to keep me overnight, since I fell from such a height, and I'm not allowed to move it for awhile, but I feel fine.”

Harry nodded, still unable to shake the worry in his belly. He didn't like hospitals. Not after everything had happened when he'd first come to live with Sirius and Remus. 

“We saved your broom,” said Alicia. “It's back in the broomshed.”

Katie looked relieved, and opened her mouth to speak to.

Madam Pomfrey's bustled in at the moment with an expression of disapproval. “Only two visitors at a time.”

“Go on,” said Katie. “Don't let me keep you. Besides, you boys stink.”

“It's called au natural,” said Fred. 

“The epitome of manliness is a strong scent,” said George.

“Yuck,” said Angelina. 

Madam Pomfrey's pointed at the door, silencing them all. Harry and his friends filed out, followed by Oliver and the twins. 

“Do you think Uncle Remus is still here?” asked Kitty after the older boys were gone.

Harry shook his head. “He should be home by now. He has a late patrol on weekends.”

“Oh, well,” said Kitty. “I’m going back to my common room, then. I could use a shower.”

Draco turned to follow her, before stopping. “So, did Remus tell you two not to go anywhere alone, too?”

“Of course he did,” said Kitty. “Which is why you’re following me.”

“We’re in the same house,” Draco replied simply.

Kitty shrugged.

“See you later, then,” Harry said, receiving a way in return.

“I bet they’ve got the party ready by now,” said Ron.

“Party?” asked Harry, and then it occurred to him. They’d just beat Slytherin. Of course there was going to be a party, and Harry had a feeling he wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight.

* * *

For security reasons, the floo network to Hogwarts was a closed one, with the exception of the Headmaster’s, and Remus only ever used that on full moons, when he took Kitty and the Heathers twins home. 

At first, Remus would walk to the gate and exit the school grounds, but now he was in the habit of taking one of the secret passages out of the school, a much shorter walk in his opinion. He never came out the other end, as the moment he was outside the school’s invisible barrier, he would disapparate to the small alleyway near Grimmauld Place.

He could already hear the sweet melody from outside the front door. He smiled, recognizing the Moonlight Sonata, and opened the door. The music stopped at the sound of it closing again.

“Hello, love,” called Remus. A second later, the song continued, as though the pianist’s curiosity were satisfied. Remus smiled, and took his time setting down his bag, which contained his work robes. He always switched it out with a Muggle coat to go to and from work.

Loosening his tie, he ascended the stairs to the first floor, where the children’s game room and the drawing room were located.

Sirius looked up at him from the piano, and gave him a handsome smile. There was just enough space on the bench for Remus to join him.

“I do enjoy coming home to this,” said Remus, kissing him on the cheek.

Sirius chuckled. “Oh, this isn’t for you. Thatch needed a song to get through his loneliness.”

Remus rolled his eyes, recognizing his husband’s sarcasm. “Oh, and why would Thatch be lonely?”

“He misses Hedwig, of course,” said Sirius, not missing a note. “He doesn’t like being an only owl.”

“Of course,” said Remus, mesmerized by Sirius’ fingers dancing across the keys.

The song came to an end, then, and Sirius lowered the cover to the keys. He looked at Remus. “How are you doing, Moony?”

“I’m worried,” said Remus.

“About the Chamber of Secrets?” 

He nodded, and felt Sirius’ arms wrap tightly around him. “I just don’t know what to do. If the Chamber of Secrets is real, and this isn’t some insane prank, then the staff and students could be in serious danger. It’s my job to protect them.”

“You’re not the only one with a responsibility to the students, Remy,” said Sirius. “The other teachers have a duty as well.”

“But I’m the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher,” Remus told him. “If it’s anyone’s job to stop this thing, it’s mine.”

“And you’re probably the best Defense teacher the school has had in a long time,” said Sirius. “But don’t put so much pressure on yourself. Take it from me. Don’t think that you’re alone. You and the other professors are a team.”

Remus knew he was right, and nodded.

“So, you don’t have patrol until eight…” said Sirius, pulling him a little closer. “That’s four hours from now. And Reggie went to Ruth’s.”

Remus couldn’t help but smile. “Did you have something in mind to pass the time?”

“Maybe,” Sirius said, pressing his lips to the crook of Remus’ neck. “Why don’t you come upstairs and find out?”

* * *

Remus straightened his tie once more before stepping out of the secret passage and back into the school.

The dark hall was empty but for the inhabitants of the paintings. One of the friendlier ones waved sleepily to him before rolling over.

Remus breathed in deeply, and set out down the corridor, quite on edge. 

Somewhere on the third floor, he found Snape, who didn't actually have patrol duty that night. But Remus had figured out rather quickly that Snape only slept a few hours each night. The rest of it he would spend wandering. How he ever had the energy to get through the day was beyond the werewolf's comprehension.

It was right after they'd passed each other that Remus heard it. A soft thump from the floor above.

“What was that?” He whispered, turning to look at Snape.

The other professor remained silent, but followed Remus up the nearest staircase.

A small, dark mass lay on the floor further down the corridor. Both of the professors raised their wands, eyes peeled. They stepped carefully towards the figure.

As they drew closer, it became clear what it was. A boy, still dressed in his school robes, lying on his back with a camera in his hands. His limbs were stiff.

While Snape kept a lookout for anything threatening, Remus knelt to get a better look.

“It’s Colin Creevey,” said Remus. “A first year Gryffindor. He's been petrified.”

“Is that relief I hear?” Asked Snape.

“Better this than dead,” said Remus. He raised his wand and shot off two patronus’ - one to the headmaster, and one to the Head of Gryffindor House.

“It appears whatever caused this has vanished without a trace,” said Snape, having already searched the area with a lit wand. 

Remus nodded and stood up. “Where did all this water come from?”

Snape looked down. Sure enough, part of the area, especially the floor around where Colin lay, was covered in a thin layer of water.

Neither Snape nor Remus could offer any explanation. Which, you see, was quite a problem, as they were both the resident experts in the area of dark creatures and magic. If their combines intelligence could not solve this mystery, then the school was surely doomed.


	9. Dueling Club

The morning after the Quidditch game was full of fearful and bewildered gossip as the news of Colin Creevey's near-demise spread. 

Whispered theories and ideas of what monster hid within the school were abound, but none of them fit all of the facts. 

Although their teachers kept a calm facade, and continued to teach as usual, it did nothing to quell the student's anxieties. 

Harry found himself taking mental attendance of his friends every morning, and found himself unable to focus in classes they didn't share with Slytherin. 

Percy, the twins, and Ron became extra protective of Ginny, for although Muggleborn were believed to be the targets, the fact that it was a first year Gryffindor struck fear in even the bravest of Godric's students. Every other minute, somebody would ask “Where is Ginny?” and if she did not appear in a moment, a panicked search would ensue as they tried to locate her.

Harry found himself counting heads whenever he and his friends turned a corner, and none of them went anywhere alone. They knew better than to disobey a direct order from Remus.

Sirius and Regulus mirror-called them every night. Sometimes Remus would return home early enough to join these conversations, but often it was just Sirius.

A week after Colin was attacked, Harry, Ron, and Neville came down to the common room to find a crowd around the news board.

“What's going on?” Asked Harry.

“They're starting a duelling club,” Hermione answered, pushing herself out of the crowd. “Professor Flitwick and Remus are in charge of it. I suppose they want us to be able to defend ourselves in case we…”

“Is anyone allowed to join?” Asked Ron.

Hermione nodded. “The first meeting is in the Great Hall tomorrow afternoon.”

* * *

The following day, about fifty students gathered in the Great Hall. The four long tables stood against the wall, held there by magic, of course.

Flitwick, a champion duellist, easily held their attention as he explained the basics of duelling etiquette. He and Remus then demonstrated, with Flitwick easily deflecting Remus’ attempt to disarm him.

“Now, let's do one more demonstration,” said Flitwick. “We'll need two volunteers.”

One hand shot up - Kitty's, followed by a second - Pansy's. 

Even if Flitwick had realized that this was a bad combination, there were no other volunteers. Very few were brave enough to challenge Kitty Black to a duel. 

“Miss Black, come take my place,” said Remus, a bad feeling in his stomach. “and Miss Parkinson, you may take Professor Flitwick's.”

The two professors stepped aside as the girls took up their positions.

“Remember, in competitive duelling, you always bow to your opponent,” said Flitwick. “This shows respect for the other duellist. And without respect, no one would call you honorable.”

The girls reluctantly bowed to each other before raising their wands. Kitty copied Remus’ stance - the same one she'd used last year in Professor Hatterman's class during their mock-duels.

“You will only attempted to disarm,” said Remus. “Is that understood.”

Kitty and Pansy nodded without looking at him.

“Wands at the ready,” said the squeaky professor. “And… begin!”

“Expelliarmus!” Cried Kitty before Pansy could open her mouth. 

The other girl's wand popped out of her hand, and Pansy raced to catch it. Picking it up, she turned her red, pug-nosed face back to Kitty, who looked rather proud. 

“Well done, Miss Black,,” said Flitwick. “A perfectly executed spell. Now, one more time please. Back into position. Three, tw-”

“Serpensortia!” Cried Pansy before Flitwick finished.

A long black snake shot out the end of her wand, landed in a heap on the floor in front of Kitty, and slithered toward the now frozen girl.

Remus stepped forward, knowing very well that while Kitty loved Slytherin house, she absolutely, positively HATED snakes. 

But before he could do anything, he heard an odd voice. He turned towards it, just as the snake did, and could not believe it.

“Harry?” He said. The snake had stopped advancing on Kitty and was eyeing Justin, a Hufflepuff.

Harry made the sound again, and the snake turned away.

Remus raised his wand. “Vipera evanesca.”

The snake vanished, and for a moment, there was silence. Remus immediately turned to Harry, grabbing him by the arm and leading him out. Only one thought crossed his mind.

Harry was a parselmouth.

* * *

The nearest private room was the teacher’s lounge, where Professor McGonagall was sipping tea with Professor Sprout.

“Pardon me, Pomona,” said Remus, hand still on Harry’s shoulder. “Could I have a few moments with Minerva?”

“Of course, dear,” said Pomona, toddling out of the room. “Oh, it seems you have some company.”

Remus turned to see Kitty and Draco outside the door, concern in their eyes. He waved them inside.

Once the door closed behind them, Remus let go of Harry, and sat them all down in chairs.

“What’s going on?” asked Harry. “Why is everyone upset?” 

“Harry…” Remus began. 

“Is this about the snake?” asked Harry. “I just wanted it to leave Kitty alone… but then it went after Justin and I told it to back off and-”

“That’s what you were saying?” asked Draco.

Harry stopped. “Um… yes? I was speaking clearly.”

“Actually, no one else understood you,” Remus said. “You were speaking Parseltongue.”

Harry looked confused. “What’s Parseltongue?”

“It’s the language of snakes,” said Remus. “Few wizards are gifted with the power to speak to snakes, the most famous being Salazar Slytherin.”

“Slytherin was a Parselmouth?” asked Draco.

“Yes,” said Professor McGonagall. “And it is said that his heir is, too.”

Harry’s eyes widened. “Do you mean I’m the heir of Slytherin? But I didn’t open the Chamber of Secrets! I don’t know anything about it!”

Remus shook his head. “You’re not the heir of Slytherin, love. Although most Pureblood families are related, the Potter line is far removed, much like the Weasleys and Longbottoms.”

“It’s actually been said that your family is descended from Godric Gryffindor,” said McGonagall. “Though it’s never been proven.”

“Then how am I a Parselmouth?” asked Harry, having picked up on Draco’s words.

“I’m honestly not sure,” said Remus. “But I don’t think you need to be concerned about it. There have been many Parselmouths in history who had nothing to do with Salazar Slytherin or dark magic.”

Harry looked like he was on the verge of tears. “But all the other students heard me. What if they think I'm the heir of Slytherin?”

Remus wrapped his arms around him, having no real answers to give. He tried to reassure him, but no words seemed able to stop the tears flowing down the child's face.

Remus walked Harry out of the teacher's lounge and up the stairs, leaving Minerva with the other two. He pulled the map out of Harry's pocket and led them through the empty corridors and stairs until they reached Remus’ chambers.

Every teacher was granted an office and bed chambers separate from their classroom. Remus rarely used his, since he slept at home, but they were his nonetheless.

Harry was only sniffling by the time Remus had sat him in one of the comfy chairs and offered him a glass of pumpkin juice. Remus found the mirror in Harry's bag and called Sirius, quickly explaining the situation to him. 

“You're right to be concerned about how the other students will treat you,” said Sirius. “They think they know what they saw, even though they didn't truly understand.”

“They'll all hate me now,” said Harry. 

“Until you win the next Quidditch game,” said Sirius. “Or until they're proven wrong.”

“And we will do everything we can to find the real heir,” said Remus. 

Sirius nodded. “Remember this, Prongslet. It's times like these that you learn who your true friends are.”

* * *

Sirius turned out to be right. The following day, theories about Harry being a Parselmouth had reached the ears of every student in school. However, the rumors were a little different than Harry had expected.

For starters, no one thought Harry was the heir of Slytherin. They did, however, think he had something to do with the Chamber, though. 

The working theory they all had was that Harry was assisting the true heir of Slytherin, Draco, and that the two of them were planning on killing all the Mudbloods in the school, and then Harry would become the next Voldemort. Kitty confirmed that it was Pansy and Theodore Nott who had started the rumor.

Everywhere they went, Draco and Harry were stared at and whispered about, but Harry tried not to care. He had his friends by his side, just as Sirius had said. 

And it wasn't just the six of them. Fred and George and the rest of the Quidditch team believed Harry and Draco were both innocent. Even Merric and Embry stood by them, spending much of their time trying to convince the other Hufflepuffs that Draco was nothing like his father, to no avail. 

Over the few weeks leading up to Christmas, there were a few students who were rather nasty to Harry and Draco, some even attempting to hex them, but a professor always seemed to be around the corner, ready to stop any tomfoolery.

“Herbology is canceled today,” said Neville, after arriving late to breakfast, just three days before break. “Justin and Ernie and I were helping Professor Sprout prepare the greenhouses for the blizzard. It's supposed to be a bad one.”

“How do you prepare the greenhouses?” Asked Hermione curiously.

Harry fidgeted with his food as Neville dove into a long explanation of the various protection spells and other techniques they'd used to protect the magical plants from the blistering cold. 

“Oy, Potter,” said a Ravenclaw fourth year. “There's a snake in the toilet in our dorm. Think you could ask it to leave?”

Harry didn't answer as the other Ravenclaws sniggered. He was quite used to it by now. 

“What's the matter?” Asked another Ravenclaw. “Can't do anything without the heir of Slytherin's permission?”

“Five points from Ravenclaw,” said Percy, appearing out of nowhere. “Not another word out of you, or you'll all have detention.”

The Ravenclaws walked away, grumbling.

“Thanks, Percy,” said Ron, patting Harry's shoulder in comfort.

“Don't be alone,” Percy said in an undertone. “Not even in the common room.”

Harry nodded, and looked up at Remus. He looked more tired than ever, though the full moon was still a week away. Tired as he was, he still gave Harry a reassuring smile before standing and heading off to his first class.

* * *

“What's going on?”

“There's been another attack!”

“Attack? Who was it?”

“Some Hufflepuff in first year.”

“No, it was a second year!”

“Yes, that same boy that Potter threatened with the snake in dueling club!”

“I heard there were two victims. The other was one of the ghosts.”

“What?”

“This proves it! Potter and Malfoy are behind the attacks!”

“Do you think they'll be expelled?”

“No way. Not when they're both related to a teacher.”

These were the whispers Harry and Draco heard as they walked with their friends to their classes the following morning, after Justin Finch-Fletchley and Nearly Headless Nick had been petrified.

“Never thought a Hufflepuff could look so scary,” said Neville as they passed a Hufflepuff prefect staring them down as they approached.

“Five points from Gryffindor, Potter,” said the prefect.

“Why?” Kitty demanded.

“Uniform indiscretion,” he replied. “His tie isn't straight.”

Harry looked down. His tie was slightly askew, but no more than any of the other students in the corridor.

“You're not even wearing a tie,” Kitty argued.

The prefect glared at her. “Any more cheek, and I'll be taking points from your house, too.”

“I'd like to see you try,” said a cold voice behind them.

It was Marcus Flint, Kitty's Captain, swaggering up to them with a look of disdain.

“Take points of us for stupid reasons and I'll have a little discussion with the Head Boy,” Flint threatened. “Who happens to be a good friend of mine.”

“You're going to stick up for Potter?” Asked the prefect in disbelief. 

“We don't care about Potter,” said Flint. “But you mess with him, then Black or Malfoy is gonna stick up for him. You mess with Black and Malfoy, then you're messing with Slytherin House, and if you don't want to know just how 'unfriendly’ we can be.”

With that, Flint walked away. The prefect glared at Harry and his friends, and then hurried in the opposite direction.

“Did Flint just stick up for me?” Asked Kitty. “After I yelled at him?” 

“I suppose house loyalties run deep,” said Hermione.

The students were much less direct or daring with Harry and Draco after the confrontation with Flint. Seeing the Slytherin's show more bravery than them, the Gryffindors, even those Harry didn't know well, began to stand up for them as well. While the Hufflepuffs were still angry, the Ravenclaws backed down in fear of retaliation from either the Gryffindors or Slytherins. Some were now cordial, but most pretended they didn't exist. This made the last three days much easier.

* * *

On the last day, Harry and his friends found themselves in S.P.E.W. headquarters with the rest of the club - Blaise, Tracey and Daphne from Slytherin house and Fay and Sophie from Gryffindor. None of them were keeping on topic, much to Hermione's chagrin.

“Now, onto our next order of business-” Hermione said.

“It just doesn't make sense,” said Fay for the fifth time. “The monster killed someone last time right?” 

“We've talked about this three times,” said Hermione. “Can we please get back to the meeting?”

“I don't see how we're going to make any progress with S.P.E.W. when we're all outcasts,” said Tracey. 

“You're not outcasts,” said Harry, eyes downcast. “Just me and Draco are.”

“Yeah, and no offense to either of you,” Blaise said. “but the other students didn't have much respect for S.P.E.W. before, and now that two of our members are murderous Muggle-haters, it's going to be near impossible to accomplish anything.”

“Aren't you a chipper one,” Kitty commented. “But I suppose you're right. We'll have to wait until the real heir is caught.”

“If he's caught,” Neville corrected.

“I just don't understand why no one is dead yet,” said Fay.

“Why would you want that?” Asked Sophie.

“I don't,” Fay told her.

“I think I know what you mean,” said Draco. “I was thinking the same thing. If the monster is capable of killing, then why hasn't it done so already? Why is it only petrifying people? And how is it doing that in the first place?”

Hermione tapped her chin in thought, having given up on the meeting. “Maybe whoever opened the chamber knows that if someone dies, the school will be closed, and they won't be able to accomplish their mission.”

“So he or she is playing it safe?” Asked Harry. “What do you think, Gin?”

They turned to see the still very pale ginger. 

Ginny shrugged, not looking at any of them.

“You're not still scared, are you?” Asked Ron. “It's alright, Ginny. That thing isn't after purebloods. You've got nothing to worry about.”

But Ginny didn't look any better.

“She looks a bit peaky, Ron,” said Daphne. “Perhaps you should take her to Madam Pomfrey.”

Ron frowned. “Yeah, come on, Ginny.”

Ginny, with a queasy expression, followed her brother out of the room.

“Poor Ginny,” said Sophie. “Was she good friends with that boy? The first year?”

“Colin?” Asked Harry. “I didn't think she was. She never really talked about him.”

“But can you just imagine what a horrible first year she and her classmates are having?” Asked Fay. “Remember our first year? It was so magical! Especially after you lot saved the whole school from Professor Quirrell and won us the house cup!”

Harry and the others tried to laugh at this, but they were still stuck on Ginny. It had been a rather frightening first semester for her. 

“Well, I've got to finish packing,” said Daphne, standing and stretching. “Happy Christmas, everyone!”

The others stood and returned the farewell, though much less jovially, and set out down the corridor to their common rooms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am officially done writing Year 2 and am working on the outline for Year 3 at the moment, which means these updates will be more or less regular for the next month or so.
> 
> I've been a little stressed lately, as I've got college coming up in the fall and I'm about to buy a new car, so I haven't written as much as I usually do (which sounds counter intuitive, as writing helps me de-stress). And I'm starting a new exercise regimen.
> 
> But I wrote five or six chapters over the weekend and I have no idea how. I actually wanted to work on my other stories, but somehow I ended up in this one. So... yeah... Hope you enjoyed. Please leave a comment.


	10. Bad Timing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good news, everyone! 
> 
> I got a new car.
> 
> Bad news, everyone!
> 
> I now have a car payment again. 
> 
> Life.

Harry carefully stepped off the train, an immediate sense of relief flooding through him. He was free. Free from the stares and the whispers and the judgement. 

“Here,” said Kitty behind him, sliding his trunk off the train towards him.

Harry caught the end and slowly maneuvered it to the ground, where it suddenly floated up and away from him, setting itself neatly onto a nearby trolley.

“Need a hand?” 

“Uncle Sirius!” Cried Harry, jumping into his arms. 

“Hey, Prongslet,” said Sirius, chuckling.

Once they had Kitty's trunk, and had said goodbye to their friends, Sirius and Regulus took Harry and Kitty's hands, temporarily shrinking their trunks for easier transport, and disapparated. 

They reappeared in their usual alley and made their way to Number 12 Grimmauld Place. 

“Where's Uncle Remus?” Asked Harry.

For a moment, Harry thought he saw something like anger, or pain, in Sirius’ eyes. But then it was gone. “He's making dinner.”

Remus was indeed in the kitchen when they arrived, in comfortable clothes but looking anything but relaxed. He still gave the children each a hug and a kiss.

“Welcome back,” he said to Sirius.

“Thanks,” came the reply.

Regulus looked rather helpless.

Harry and Kitty exchanged glances, wondering what was going on between their parents. 

“Why don't the two of you settle in?” Asked Remus. “Supper should be ready by the time you're finished.”

“Alright,” said Harry. He and Kitty dashed upstairs. 

“Are Remus and Sirius fighting?” Asked Kitty.

“I… don't know,” said Harry. “But it looks that way.”

After taking out the few things they would need for the two weeks, Harry and Kitty went back downstairs, but stopped just outside the kitchen door.

“I'm sorry, but I don't agree,” came Remus’ voice, cold and quiet. 

“It's not safe for them,” Sirius insisted. “Or for you. I don't want the three of you going back.”

They heard the sound of a chair scraping the floor. “I can't abandon my students! I'm the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!”

“A lot of good that's done,” Sirius replied. “You haven't a clue what that monster is, or who's controlling it!”

There was a steely silence.

“If you're so concerned, then why don't you have Scrimgeour send some Aurors in to protect the students?” Asked Remus coolly. “You obviously don't trust me to do it.”

“Scrimgeour wanted to, after the first boy was attacked,” said Sirius, annoyed. “But Fudge won't let him.”

“Pity,” snipped Remus.

“Enough,” came a new, stern voice. Regulus. “Both of you.”

Neither Remus nor Sirius said anything, which probably meant they'd given Regulus their attention. 

Regulus spoke in a calm manner. “Remus, I know you're doing your best, and if there's anyone on this planet who I can trust, it's you. Kitty will be returning to Hogwarts in January.”

“Thank you, Regulus,” said Remus, sounding exhausted now.

“But you do need help,” said Regulus. “The teachers of Hogwarts shouldn't be responsible for an investigation in what is clearly the product of dark magic. I believe the Auror department should open an investigation.”

“But Fudge said-” Remus began.

“-that we can't physically go to Hogwarts,” said Regulus. “Or set up a guard. He never said anything about opening an investigation and partnering with the teachers.”

The other two were quiet for a moment. 

“That's a good idea,” said Sirius quietly. “I'm sorry, Remus.”

“So am I,” Remus replied. 

“Now that's settled,” said Regulus. “Did either of you put a Silencing Charm on the door, or did Harry and Kitty just eavesdrop on this whole discussion?”

“What?” Said Remus. 

Kitty and Harry opened the door, smiling sheepishly. Remus, who was still standing, and Sirius looked at each other, guilt in their eyes. 

“We didn’t mean for you to hear all of that,” said Remus, sitting down.

Sirius stood up and went around the table until he was next to Remus, and wrapped his arms around him. Remus returned the embrace. When they let go of each other, Sirius sat down next to Remus. 

Harry was glad that they were no longer fighting, and that he and Kitty were returning to Hogwarts. He wasn’t looking forward to the whispers and stares again, but he didn’t want to miss Quidditch or his classes or his friends. 

As they settled into dinner, Kitty brought a more positive and upbeat atmosphere, and by the time dinner was over, they were all laughing and smiling together.

Upstairs in the drawing room, Sirius sat down at the piano and played while Kitty and Harry challenged Regulus to a game of Exploding Snap. Remus picked up a book from one of his numerous stacks, eventually falling asleep on the couch. 

“Stress from work,” explained Regulus when Remus’ book fell off his sleeping form and hit the floor. “Combine that with the full moon only a few days away, and you've got a very tired werewolf.”

Sirius said nothing, but gently picked up his husband and carried him up to their bedroom.

“Will he be alright?” Asked Harry, concerned.

“He'll be fine,” said Regulus, yawning. “He needs rest, and so do we. Come on, we’ll finish the game tomorrow.”

Kitty suddenly looked grumpy. “I wish the full moon wasn't on Christmas Eve. It's so unfair.”

Regulus patted her shoulder in understanding. 

“And Harry's going to be all alone!” Kitty realized. “Unless Uncle Sirius doesn't go with you.”

Harry had not thought about this. He knew he wouldn't quite be alone, for he always spent full moons with one of his surrogate grandparents, but spending Christmas Eve without the people he loved the most, and knowing the pain they would be going through… it hurt to think about it.

* * *

The day before Christmas Eve was normally spent cleaning the house to prepare for the holiday. Despite the lamentable timing of the full moon, it was Grimmauld Place's turn to host the Christmas party. Molly, Augusta and Narcissa had each insisted on trading turns, but Remus was having none of it. 

Sirius, on the other hand, refused to let Remus lift a wand to help clean. They would have done the same with Regulus and Kitty, but the pair had gone to Ruth's for a quiet early Christmas dinner, and they had picked up Kitty’s Uncle Finley before heading to Diagon Alley.

Remus instead spent most of the day reading and napping on the couch, while Harry followed his other uncle around the house, learning cleaning spells. 

“And remember,” said Sirius, after Harry successfully charmed a stack of dishes and a sponge to do their job. “If anyone asks, we have never, ever allowed you or Kitty to perform magic outside Hogwarts.”

Harry grinned and gave him a mock salute. But then his smile dropped.

“Uncle Sirius?” He asked. “Were you really going to keep us all home after Christmas?”

Sirius lowered his wand from the dusty drapes he was about the purge, and sighed. “Prongslet, all I want is for you, Kitty and Remus to be safe. Sometimes I forget, though, that while Remus isn't an Auror, he's still a skilled duellist and a capable wizard. I shouldn't have doubted that by trying to keep you all here, or tried to keep him from protecting his students. It doesn't mean I won't worry, of course. I always will, even when you're a grown man and off on your own.”

Harry didn't answer, knowing Sirius had more to say.

“But yeah, I suppose if it had been up to just me, you wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts,” said Sirius. “I've had a history of making rash decisions, as you well know. Kitty is becoming notorious for that, too. But something I love about your Uncle Remus is how he keeps me grounded. He makes sure I've thought things through…"

"And you do the opposite for him, right?" Asked Harry, remembering all the times Sirius had said to Remus, live a little. "He never would have taken the job at Hogwarts if you hadn't encouraged him."

"Yes, I suppose that's true," chuckled Sirius, turning back to the curtain and charming it to dust itself. "We compliment each other. I hope someday that you find someone like that."

Harry quite agreed.

* * *

The next day, Christmas Eve, the family had finally moved past the argument between Remus and Sirius. Instead, they focused on cheering up an uncharacteristically gloomy Kitty.

"It's not fair," Kitty said for probably the eighth time. 

"There isn't much we can do," said Regulus. "Harry will be fine. He won't let Sirius stay with him, anyways."

Harry nodded, snuggling closer to Remus, who was half-asleep on the couch. Sirius was behind the couch, leaning on it and stroking Remus' hair, an expression of contemplation on his face.

Then his eyes lit up like a spark and he straightened himself. "Well, since we'll all be apart for Christmas Eve, why don't we go ahead and open our first gifts? And then we'll play some carols."

Kitty grimaced at him. "Our Christmas Eve gift is always pyjamas."

"You can put them back on before you come home in the morning," Regulus told her. "Come on, it'll be fun. And haven't you been learning a new song on the piano? I'd very much like to hear it."

Kitty sighed, and looked at her uncle and cousin on the couch. Remus was now sitting up, watching Sirius stroll over to the Christmas tree, as awake as he possibly could be.

She smiled, and accepted a purple gift box that floated over to her. 

"Aurora!" She cried, holding up the pink princess pyjamas, which looked very much like Princess Aurora's dress, but with a pair of matching pants and shorts, giving the wearer a choice. 

Aurora the cat slunk over to her and meowed.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to disturb your nap, Aurora," said Kitty. "Look, isn't it cute?"

Aurora purred and rubbed herself against the gown Kitty held up, as the little witch giggled.

On the couch, Harry had opened a red and gold box to find a set of Tutshill Tornado jammies. "Brilliant!"

Remus' pyjamas was a light red, complete with a new robe. "Ah, I've been needing one of these, ever since someone chewed a hole in my old one."

Everyone glanced at Paddington, who seemed determined to look everywhere except Remus.

"Oh, come here, Paddy," said Remus, patting the couch. "I'm not angry anymore."

Paddy trotted up to him and hopped on the couch between Sirius and Remus. He sniffed at the package in Sirius' hands. 

"Not a chew toy," Sirius jokingly told the dog. He opened the gift. "Or maybe it is."

The rest of the family laughed as Sirius picked up an actual dog toy, an amused smile on his face. "Fetch, Paddy."

Paddington hopped off the couch and chased after the new rope toy. 

Sirius pulled out his actual gift - a set of black and maroon pyjamas. Regulus had a similar set, but they had emerald green instead of maroon.

The floo roared to life at that moment, and before them stood Pollux.

Harry's grin faded. He was staying with his grandpa tonight, but he hadn't expected him to be so early. 

Before any of them could greet each other, however, blue flames engulfed the hearth twice more, revealing none other than Narcissa and Draco.

Surprised, Harry looked at his uncles. They were both smiling brightly at him.

"Hullo, Pollux," Sirius said to his great-uncle. "I'm afraid we haven't had a chance to tell Harry yet."

"All the more surprise, then" said Pollux, turning to his surrogate grandson. "Wonderful news, dear boy. Narcissa and Draco have invited the two of us to stay with them for Christmas Eve."

"Really?" Asked Harry, hardly able to contain his excitement. Draco gave him a wide grin. "Brilliant!"

Kitty looked just as pumped as the boys, despite the fact that she would not be there. "Do you know what this calls for?"

"A Christmas carol?" Asked Narcissa.

Kitty hopped out of her seat and bounded over to the piano. "Come on, Uncle Sirius! Let's play!"

Sirius chuckled and sat down next to her, and together they began "We You a Merry Christmas" while the rest of the family sang along.

After a few carols and Kitty's solo, "Silent Night", it was obvious the effects of the full moon were taking their toll on the three lycanthropes. After a hug from each of his uncles (and three from Kitty), Harry bid his family good night and followed his grandpa into the floo to Draco's house.

* * *

"Wake up, cousin! It's Christmas!" 

Harry sat up, rubbing his eyes and yawning. "Happy Christmas," he mumbled, looking around. 

Draco's room was neat and tidy, even with all of the Quidditch and Weird Sisters posters everywhere. On his desk sat a miniature Christmas tree with blinking fairy lights all over it. A tiny gift box had been placed underneath, which hadn't been there before.

"For Clementine," explained Draco after Harry gave it a questioning look. "Let's go. Mum always makes hot chocolate and hotcakes for breakfast on Christmas day."

Harry thought that sounded delicious as he followed Draco downstairs, but he still missed Remus' full English breakfast. 

Unsurprisingly, Grandpa Pollux was sipping tea at the dining table reading a passage from a very old book that Harry recognized as the Bible.

He certainly wasn't expecting to find Sirius and Regulus sitting with Pollux, or for Remus to be magicking eggs across the room to Narcissa. Or for Kitty to be curled up on the couch in her new pyjamas. Clementine was perched above her, turning her head curiously at the little witch.

"You're all here!" Cried Harry.

"Happy Christmas," Sirius said, and the greeting was echoed around the room.

"Hap… py," came Kitty’s yawn from the couch. "Christ… mas."

“I suppose she’s not hungry, then,” said Narcissa, sending plates towards the table.

“Wha-?” cried Kitty, sitting up so quickly she tumbled off the couch. Almost immediately, she was standing again and walking to the table with the practiced dignity of a Black.

Harry sat between Remus and Sirius, more than happy to have them both at his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did I do with writing the tension in this chapter? Too much? Too little? Goldilocks? Could have been written better for the reader's comprehension? 
> 
> Let me know in the comments.
> 
> And that one line where Kitty shouts "Wake up, cousin!" - can't get it out of my head. All I hear is Harry Melling's voice in the first movie: "Wake up, cousin! We're going to the zoo!" Stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp down the stairs.


	11. The Diary

They returned to Hogwarts just two days before Kitty’s birthday, and very little seemed to have changed concerning Harry, Draco and the rest of the school. Gryffindor and Slytherin were still on their side, Ravenclaw was silent, and Hufflepuff still hated their guts.

Halfway through the chilly month was the Slytherin and Hufflepuff match, in which Hufflepuff nearly won. Apparently, angry Hufflepuffs were wicked at Quidditch, but their Seeker, a fourth year named Diggory who didn’t have a mean bone in his body, had been just a second too late catching the Snitch.

“Remind me never to become an enemy of the ‘Puffs,” said Neville as they returned to the school. “They’re quite menacing.”

January soon turned to February, in which one of the Professors (no one knew who, but it definitely wasn’t Snape, judging by his expression) had decided to hold a Valentine’s Day Dance. 

This did, of course, have the benefit of distracting everyone from Harry and Draco for a few days as everyone tried to find a date to the ball, make cards and silly poems, and decorate the Common Rooms and Great Hall. 

Harry wasn’t very interested in going to the ball, but Sirius and Remus gently urged him to attend, even if he didn’t have a date.

“No one expects the younger kids to have dates,” Sirius said through the mirror one night. “You’re only twelve, after all.”

“Alright, I’ll go,” Harry said.

Harry did end up with a date in the end - in the form of Fay Dunbar shyly asking him if he wanted to go with her. Not wanting to let down a good friend like Fay, Harry had said yes, and they’d both agreed it was a ‘just as friends’ sort of thing.

At Blaise’s urging, Draco asked Hermione to go with him. Unfortunately, Hermione didn’t seem to realize what he meant.

“That’s a great idea, Draco!” Hermione cried.

“It- it is?” asked Draco.

“Of course! If a bunch of us go as friends, then Harry and Fay won’t feel so out of place.”

And that was how Hermione ended up pairing the rest of them together: Neville with Kitty, Ron with Sophie, Ginny with Blaise, and Tracey with Daphne.

“Sorry, there weren’t any more boys,” said Hermione at the S.P.E.W. meeting that Sunday.

“It’s alright,” said Tracey. “I prefer girls anyways.”

“Oh,” said Hermione. “I… didn’t know that.”

Harry could tell the others weren’t pleased with their partners, either. Sophie looked annoyed at being paired with Ron, glancing longingly at Blaise. Blaise didn’t seem bothered, but Ginny, who was dwarfed by him in height, stared at him with wide eyes. And Kitty, well… Harry knew exactly who Kitty would rather be with, but he also knew she would never object to Neville, concerned as they all were with building up his self-esteem.

And none of them wanted to hurt Hermione’s feelings, either, by telling her she wasn’t that great at match-making. Instead, they all vowed to find dates as quickly as possible the next time there was a ball. 

Draco, of course, was the most disappointed of all.

* * *

“What was that noise?” asked Harry. 

Hermione and Ron looked very concerned at him for a moment. They’d been on there way through the second floor to spend their break on the grounds.

“I heard it, too,” said Neville. “It sounds like… a whale?”

“Oh, that’s no whale, dear boy,” said the Fat Friar as he floated across the corridor. “The poor lass has had her heart broken again. It’d better not have been Peeves this time.”

“What lass?” asked Ron.

“Oh, young Myrtle,” said the Friar, before disappearing into a wall. 

“Oh, of course,” said Hermione. “Well, we’d better go study now.”

“Yeah, we’d best be off,” said Kitty.

Both girls turned and walked towards the stairs.

“Who’s Myrtle?” asked Draco.

Kitty sighed. “They’re not going to stop asking us.”

“I know,” Hermione agreed. “Well, come on, then.”

They led the boys around the corner to the girl’s toilets, where quite a bit of water was spilling out into the corridor.

“Out of Order?” Ron said. “Why are you going inside?”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “Don’t you want to know who Myrtle is?”

The boys later regretted their decision to follow Hermione and Kitty into the girl’s lavatory, particularly Harry and Ron. Harry, because the strangely young ghost girl seemed to have a crush on him, and Ron, because Percy spotted them leaving the lavatory and threatened to give him detention if he ever did it again.

But it hadn’t been a trip in vain. In the middle of the flooded floor, Harry had found a curiously dry book - a journal of sorts - and stuck it in his bag as they listened to Myrtle’s tale of woe (someone had dropped a book on her head, or rather, through her head).

In his bed later that night, Harry studied the book. It was blank, but very old. The leather cover was unadorned apart from a name. Tom Marvolo Riddle. That evening, despite everything his parents had taught him, he decided to write to it.

And he subsequently learned the story, from Tom Riddle’s point of view, of Hagrid and his expulsion.

The next morning was Valentine’s Day, and Harry, even after learning about Hagrid the previous night, was quite excited about the ball that evening.

It was in the hustle and bustle of breakfast that someone bumped into Harry, spilling the contents of his bag on the floor. 

His friends helped him clean it up, but he couldn’t help but notice Ginny’s very white face. He supposed she was still nervous about going to the dance with Blaise.

Finally, it was time to get dressed, and Harry, Ron and Neville started upstairs to their dormitory, just in time for Dean and Seamus to come running back down. 

“HARRY!” Seamus cried. “Someone broke into our room! They’ve wrecked your side!”

The boys followed him upstairs, and Harry looked at his books and robes and belongings strewn about the floor. He went straight to his mattress and peeked under it.

“They knew what they were looking for,” Harry said. “The diary is gone.”

Neville and Ron exchanged worried glances. 

“How’d they know you had it?” asked Ron.

“And how did they get in here?” asked Neville.

“Whoever it was,” Harry said. “They’ve got to be a Gryffindor.”

Dean and Seamus assisted in cleaning Harry’s things up before the five of them put on some nicer non-uniform clothes. It was more of a casual dance than a ball, after all. 

Fay was wearing a pretty pink dress when they arrived back in the common room. She and Sophie were plaiting a very upset Ginny’s hair while Hermione was trying to calm her down.

“What’s going on?” asked Percy just before Ron could ask.

“I don’t know,” Hermione said. “She won’t tell me, but she came down here in tears. I think she might be nervous about the dance.”

“Who’s she going with?” asked Fred.

“Blaise,” said Harry. “He’s really nice, but he can be intimidating at times.”

Ginny sniffed, drawing their attention again.

“Gin, do you want to go to the dance?” asked Percy, kneeling so he was in front of her.

Ginny shook her head, wringing her hands together in her lap.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Ginny!” cried Hermione. “I should never have paired you with someone without your permission. I didn’t consider the fact that you might not want to go.”

“I’ve got an idea,” said Percy, kneeling in front of his sister. “Why don’t you and I find a nice quiet classroom to play Gobstones or Chess in, eh? Maybe that room you use for Fossils & Flames? Would you like that?”

Ginny nodded.

“Great, and then maybe we can write home to Mum and Dad?” asked Percy. “They love getting letters from us.”

This brought a smile to Ginny’s face, just a small one, but it was enough that the others were able to relax a bit. Ginny took her big brother’s hand and followed him out of the Common Room, still wiping her eyes.

“You know,” George said. “Percy may be a prat, but he always comes through when it’s about Ginny.”

“Yeah, and Ron, too,” said Fred. “Wish he’d be that nice to us.”

“He’s given up on the two of you,” said Lee, appearing next to them. “He thinks there’s still hope for Ron.”

Ron rolled his eyes. “Well, I suppose you two have got dates, then?” 

Fred saluted him. “We do indeed, little bro, and you’ll see who when we arrive downstairs.”

With that, the three trouble-makers left the Common Room.

“Well, I suppose someone’s got to tell Blaise his date bailed on him,” said Neville.

“Not quite,” said Sophie. “I’ve got an idea.”

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the friends met in the Entrance Hall, where Sophie told them her idea - for Daphne to go with both Blaise and Tracey.

“How did you know I like boys and girls?” asked Daphne.

“Witch’s intuition,” said Sophie. “Well? Trace, Blaise, are you both alright with sharing?”

They both shrugged, and Daphne beamed, linked her arms with the two of them and led the way to the Great Hall.

The rest of them partnered up and followed, ready for a night of fun.

They spotted Fred and George just inside. Fred was slow-dancing with Arden Greyson, and George was dancing with none of than Lee Jordan.

“Are they actually on a date?” asked Hermione. “Or is this just George being… George?”

“Who knows?” asked Ron. “Want to dance, Sophie?”

“Of course,” Sophie grinned, following him onto the dance floor.

Within minutes, Harry was glad he came. Although he wasn’t big on dancing, he did take Fay onto the floor a few times. She seemed quite content to drink punch and talk to their friends like him, which was a relief. Kitty and Neville didn’t seem to be as happy, and Harry was about to try cheering them up when-

“Who’s that with Professor Lupin?” said an older student near them. 

Harry glanced at the entrance, and was happy and shocked to see Uncle Sirius walk in with Remus on his arm (or, well, the two had linked arms, but Remus was slightly shorter). 

Many of the female students were both disappointed and excited to see their professor’s husband, as he was equally as handsome as Professor Lupin himself, if not more so. 

“I didn’t know Uncle Sirius was coming,” said Kitty, a grin now on her face.

“Neither did I,” said Harry. “But I think the girls all have a new crush.”

“Of course we do!” Fay cried. “Have you _seen_ your uncles?”

“They’re like candy for the eyes,” said Daphne, almost dreamily.

“You do realize they’re both in their thirties, right?” asked Hermione.

Both girls gave her disappointed looks. 

“Hermione, could you just act like a normal girl for once?” asked Daphne.

Hermione shrugged. “I grew up with them. I just can’t see them that way.”

“I suppose we can forgive you, then,” said Fay. “But we didn’t grow up with them, so excuse us if we admire their appearance.”

“Who would you prefer, Blaise?” asked Daphne. When Blaise raised an eyebrow, she said, “Oh, come on, I’ve seen the way you look at Diggory and some other blokes. You can’t hide it.”

Blaise sighed. 

“Wait, what?” asked Fay. “Are you like Daphne?”

Daphne shook her head. “Blaise doesn’t actually like girls at all.”

The others gaped at him.

“Black,” Blaise finally said.

“What?” asked Kitty, surprised Blaise had called her by her surname.

“No, not you,” Blaise said. He nodded toward Sirius, who was talking to Flitwick. “That’s my choice.”

“Can we talk about something besides my parents?” Harry asked.

Blaise glanced at him. “You’re not bad-looking yourself, Potter.”

Harry opened his mouth to accept the compliment, but the high-pitched squeals from the girls startled him. Only Hermione seemed immune to the sudden wave of girly chatter that followed Blaise’s comment, as the boys listened in a mixture of intrigue and horror.

“No amount of Butterbeer could have prepared us for this,” said Ron, before asking Sophie onto the dance floor again to get away from the awkward conversation.

Harry and the others took the opportunity to do the same, splitting the girls up so they could once again enjoy the night.

As it was, Harry didn’t get much chance to talk to his uncles. They seemed content conversing with the adults, and Harry had realized from the beginning that Sirius wasn’t actually there for Harry. 

He was there for Remus, as Remus’ date, just as a few of the other professors had brought dates. 

And he had to agree with the girls on that: it was the sweetest thing ever.


	12. Canceled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so comes the end of July. Happy Birthday to Neville, Harry, and Jo herself!
> 
> *Hey, everyone! I'm adding this note to inform you all that I'm taking a short hiatus. With the school year beginning, I don't expect to have the time or focus to work on any of my fics for the next month. I should get back to it by mid-September or so, and if you've been reading my stories for awhile then you know I always keep to those promises. See you all soon!

Valentine’s Day, as well as Sirius Black’s appearance, became the new hot topic, until the Quidditch match a week later had everyone reeling. 

Harry’s incredible capture of the snitch in this match earned him more fame with his own house, but more infamy with the Ravenclaws, who didn’t appreciate losing their first match of the year. The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws returned to their previous treatment of Harry and Draco with renewed fervor.

This was only made worse a month later when Slytherin defeated Ravenclaw, too, 200 to 0. 

And so, even though the monster in the chamber hadn’t been heard from since before Christmas, Harry and Draco continued to make sure they were never alone. If they weren’t with one of their friends from S.P.E.W., then it was one of their Quidditch teammates, or a professor, and, once, Hagrid. 

By April, though, the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs seemingly lost interest in them. The Hufflepuffs were too busy celebrating their second Quidditch victory of the year (against Ravenclaw), and the Ravenclaws were too busy steaming over three losses in a row, and turning back to their books. If they couldn’t win at sports, then they were certainly going to try and earn the top marks in every year. 

Harry and his friends still made sure they weren’t alone, since the monster was still out there, but they were glad to be able to focus on their studies more, whatwith exams right around the corner. 

Harry’s life became classes, study sessions, and Quidditch practice, as the last game of the year was Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff. If they could beat Hufflepuff with enough points, then Gryffindor would earn the Quidditch Cup for the year. It all came down to one game. 

Somehow, he and his friends still found time to play Fossils & Flames, which had temporarily taken the place of their S.P.E.W. meetings. These were the only times that they saw Ginny, and their concern for her grew more each day.

Some days, Ginny looked perfectly fine, happy as she could be, laughing as her armies overtook Ron’s, and other days she would show up with messy hair and dark circles around her eyes, the color drained from her face. 

Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall had both done their best to help her, but no one was sure what was wrong. Remus had also sat down with her, hoping she would open up to him, to no avail. Even Percy gave her extra attention, helping her study for her first year exams. The adults had told them to have patience, and to continue to include Ginny in their usual activities. 

But Harry couldn’t help but recall Fay’s comment before Christmas about Colin Creevey. What if Ginny had really liked Colin? Perhaps she was missing him? He shared the thought with the rest of the group, and they agreed.

When the group tried to bring up Colin the next day, Ginny quickly excused herself to the loo. It had to be that, Harry realized. It had to be Colin that had Ginny worked up.

Finally, after weeks of memorizing potions and practicing spells, of Quidditch practices and worrying about Ginny, the day finally arrived.

Harry followed his teammates down to the Quidditch pitch, where they quickly dressed, checking and double-checking their equipment. 

The whole time, Harry silently wished Sirius would be out in the stands, waiting to see him play. But Sirius was at an Auror’s conference in Brazil, and he wouldn’t be back until the end of the month.

The weather outside was perfect, and Harry couldn’t tell whether he wanted to jump up and down in glee or shut himself in his locker. Thankfully, his teammates, including Fred and George, seemed to be feeling the pressure, too.

“Alright, team,” said Wood as they gathered together for their usual pep talk. “It all comes down to - Professor McGonagall?”

Turning, the others saw their Head of House standing in the doorway of the changing room, her brow creased in worry.

“This match has been cancelled,” said McGonagall.

“Cancelled?” said Wood. “But you can’t cancel Quidditch!”

“I can, and I have, Wood,” said McGonagall firmly. “There has been another attack. You are all to return to your dormitories immediately. No time to change, just grab your things and go.”

They rushed to follow her instructions, slipping past her and out the door.

“Potter.”

Harry turned back to her.

“Harry,” she said more quietly. “If you’ll follow me, please.”

But Fred and George had heard her. 

“Harry didn’t do it, professor!” cried Fred.

“Yeah, he’s been with us the whole time!” cried George.

“I appreciate your loyalty, boys, but I assure you Harry is not in any sort of trouble,” McGonagall told them. “Now, off you go.”

The twins still looked concerned, but they followed Wood and the girls, while Harry stayed with McGonagall. She led him straight to the Hospital Wing.

Neville, Ron, Kitty and Draco were already there, tears in their eyes, surrounding one of the beds. Someone small lay within, a slender fist sticking up in the air.

“No,” Harry whispered, joining his friends. “Not Hermione.”

McGonagall stepped away to give them some privacy, walking over to Madam Pomfrey to discuss something quietly.

A sniff behind him drew Harry’s attention. Percy stood nearby, next to another bed with a familiar looking girl in it.

“Penelope Clearwater,” said Ron. “Percy’s girlfriend. She and Hermione were in the library.”

“Hermione was holding a mirror,” said Kitty. “Why would she be holding a mirror?”

Harry did not know. He studied the mirror on the bedside table.

“The mirror is Penny’s,” said Percy, not looking at them. 

“Are you alright, Perce?” asked Ron.

Percy turned, slowly, and walked up to them, stopping in front of Draco.

“Please, tell me the truth,” Percy said quietly. “Did you do this?”

Draco looked hurt, the stream of tears on his face only matched by Percy’s. “No, I could never…”

Percy sniffed and nodded, his voice breaking. “I know… I’m sorry… I just…”

He covered his mouth and disappeared into the toilets. It took Neville and Harry to hold Ron back from following him, unsure whether he wanted to comfort Percy or break his nose.

It was at that moment that Remus arrived. He noticed Draco’s face first, and immediately went to comfort him.

But Draco flinched away. “Everyone thinks I did this. Why… why would I hurt Hermione?”

Remus pulled him into an embrace. “We know you didn’t do this, Draco. We’re going to find the bastard that did.”

Draco cried into his uncle’s robes, unable to reign in his emotions for the first time since his parent’s divorce. 

None of them wanted to leave Hermione, but Professor McGonagall wanted them all back in their dormitories. While Remus escorted Draco and Kitty down to the dungeons, the Gryffindors followed McGonagall up to the tower.

“What are we going to do?” asked Neville, once they were inside the common room. 

“We should talk to Hagrid,” said Ron. 

“Why?” asked Harry.

“Remember what that Riddle bloke told you?” Ron reminded him. “Hagrid was there last time the Chamber was opened. I know he’s innocent, but maybe he knows who it really was.”

“He knows a lot about dangerous creatures,” said Neville. “Even if he doesn’t know who opened the Chamber, he might know what the monster is.”

“But wouldn’t he have told Remus everything he knows?” asked Harry. “If it didn’t help Remus, it’s probably not going to help us.”

Ron stared at him. “It’s worth a try.”

Harry had to agree with this.

“Alright, fine, but let’s just the three of us go. We don’t all fit under the cloak,” said Harry.

Perhaps out of fear, the common room cleared out very early that night, so Harry, Ron and Neville threw on the cloak and slipped out of the portrait hole. They’d nearly made it out of the castle when Remus appeared from around a corner.

They froze, each holding their breath. Remus must have heard something, though, as he lit his wand and looked around carefully.

Matters were made worse when Snape descended the grand staircase.

“Found anything?” Snape asked.

“Not yet,” Remus said. “Thought I heard something just now, though.”

Snape’s eyebrows rose. “Perhaps it was your nephew and his ginger-haired sidekick.”

Remus shook his head. “Say what you want, Severus, but Harry and his friends aren’t reckless enough to be sneaking about at night, not after what happened to Hermione.”

“Of course,” said Snape.

Remus put out his wand, and the two professors disappeared into the dungeons.

Feeling a little bad about proving his uncle wrong, Harry found the walk from the castle to Hagrid’s hut was agonizingly long.

“Who’s there?” Hagrid yelled from inside when Harry knocked. “Mus’ warn ye, I’m armed!”

The door opened, and the boys pulled the cloak off. 

Hagrid looked taken aback to see them.

“What’s that for?” asked Ron, looking at Hagrid’s crossbow in horror.

“What are you lot doin’ out here at this time o’ night?” Hagrid asked. “Didn’ ye hear what happened?”

“We know,” Harry said. “But we really needed to talk to you.”

Hagrid looked around behind them. “Alrigh’ fine, get inside. Quick now.”

After shutting and locking the door, the half-giant turned to them expectantly.

“Hagrid, we know you were there when the Chamber of Secrets was first opened,” Harry said. 

“And we know you were innocent, too,” Neville said before Hagrid could say anything.

“But do you know who opened the Chamber the first time?” asked Ron.

“Or what the monster is?” asked Harry.

Hagrid sighed and sat down. “If I knew any o’ tha’, don’t ye think I’d’ve told yer uncle?”

Harry gave Ron and Neville a look that said, ‘I told you so.’

“I’m sorry, lads,” said Hagrid. “Wish I could help more, but I don’ think I’m goin’ to be here much longer, anyway.”

“What do you mean?” asked Harry.

But Fang started barking at that moment, and Hagrid herded them into the corner and threw the cloak over them. When he opened the door, the boys saw the Minister, Cornelius Fudge, and Professor Dumbledore enter the tiny hut. And Lucius Malfoy right behind them.

It was all a bit of a blur to Harry as Hagrid was arrested and Dumbledore sacked (Damn you, Malfoy, Harry thought).

Dumbledore’s odd comment about help being given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it confused him.

And spiders. Hagrid had said something about spiders.

Then they were gone, and the three pulled the cloak off.

“Follow the spiders? Is he mad?” asked Ron.

“I think I know what he means,” said Neville. “Remember that trail of spiders that was near the bathroom the day we met Myrtle?”

The other two stared at him.

“You two didn’t see the spiders leaving the castle through the window?”

“No, you did?” asked Ron. 

“You really do have a good eye,” said Harry. 

“Yeah, so Hagrid said follow the spiders. I think he meant those ones,” said Neville. “Maybe they’re still there.”

“Brilliant,” said Ron, turning a little green. “Just brilliant.”


	13. Spiders

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some asshat pulled out in front of me today. Had I not been paying attention, and going the speed limit, I would have hit them, and then I wouldn't have been able to finally update after a month's hiatus. They were actually going to the same store as me, and I gave them a good stink-eye before going in the store. I hope they learned a goddamn lesson. Like what not to do when making left turns onto a busy two-lane road. 
> 
> Anyways, I meant to post this yesterday, as it was Friday the 13th, a lucky day for my family. See, my grandfather was a POW in WWII and he tried to escape three times. On his third attempt, he actually made it and the date happened to be Friday the 13th. 3 is also a recurring number in my family, though not necessarily a lucky one.
> 
> Hope you enjoy the chapter and please leave a comment below.

The next morning, Harry, Ron and Neville met with Kitty and Draco in secret in the S.P.E.W. headquarters, where they told the Slytherins what had happened in Hagrid’s hut.

“Without Dumbledore, the school is in more danger than it was before,” said Draco.

“We’ve got to investigate this,” said Kitty. “Let’s go down to Myrtle’s bathroom and see if we can’t find those spiders.”

They found the spiders almost immediately upon reaching the lavatory.

“Alright, you and Kitty keep watch here,” said Harry to Draco. “There’s got to be a reason why things keep happening here, just remember to keep an eye on the map.”

Kitty and Draco nodded.

“The three of us will follow the spiders,” said Harry, gesturing to himself, Neville and Ron.

“We will?” asked Ron, already watching the eight-legged creatures in fear.

Ten minutes later, the three boys found themselves walking into the Forbidden Forest, still following the trail of spiders. 

Harry had never been further than the edge before, and he could see now why it was considered to be so frightening. 

"Bloody hell," said Ron. "Why couldn't it have been 'follow the butterflies?'"

“Maybe we should’ve brought Kitty,” said Neville. “Didn’t she used to explore this place with the wolves?”

“Not here exactly,” said Harry. “But a different part of the woods.”

“It’s so dark,” said Ron, lighting his wand so that they didn’t lose the trail of spiders. 

And that was when they saw the giant spider in front of them.

* * *

The three boys held their wands aloft, backs to each other so that they could see from all sides.

“What do we do?” asked Neville.

“Run?” said Harry.

“Where?” asked Ron.

A frightening howl startled them and the Acromantulas. Moments later, six wolves bounded into clearing and surrounded the three boys.

“Twilight?” asked Harry.

_Hurry,_ said Twilight in their minds. _Jump on!_

Ron and Neville each mounted a brown wolf, while Harry climbed onto Twilight. 

_Hang on tight,_ said a deeper voice, which Harry assumed was one of the brown wolves.

Then they burst out of the clearing. The forest became a blur around them, and it was impossible to tell how far they’d gone when they finally slowed down.

Waiting for them was a creature that was half-man and half-horse.

“Well done, Solan,” said the centaur. “Are you well, Harry Potter?”

Harry dismounted Twilight, and checked that both his friends were still with them.

“I… I’m fine,” said Harry. “Who are you?”

“I am Firenze,” he replied. “I am a friend of Toran.”

_Toran is the centaur that raised us,_ said Twilight. 

Firenze nodded. “Harry Potter, I do not know why you ventured so deep into the forest. It is far too dangerous for one such as yourself.”

“I… sorry,” said Harry. 

_Come,_ said Solan. _I will take you home._

Twilight stiffened next to Harry just then. Her head whipped around at Harry. 

_Something is wrong,_ she said, almost shouting in Harry’s mind. _Hurry. You must get back to Kitty. Hurry!_

Harry climbed back onto Twilight’s back, while his friends climbed onto the brown wolves, and then they were zooming through the forest once again. At the edge of the forest, Harry jumped off Twilight and ran as fast as he could towards the castle, the black wolf’s voice still crying out to him.

He didn’t stop until he reached the second floor bathroom.

“Where’re Kitty and Draco?!” he cried.

Snape, previously watching the line of spiders going out the window, turned and looked at Harry. 

Rather than ask where Harry had been, Snape simply said, “Professor Lupin took them to the Hospital Wing.”

Harry turned on his heel, barely noticing Neville and Ron behind him, and ran to the Hospital Wing.

“Harry!” cried Remus. “There you are!”

The first thing Harry noticed was Remus’ tone. Not anger. Not confusion. Relief. 

The second thing he noticed was Remus’ eyes. Red from crying.

Then he saw Kitty and Draco.

They were frozen, just like Hermione and Penelope, and Sir Nicholas and Justin, and Colin. Petrified.

From their positions, he could tell they’d both been standing. Kitty must have been holding the map, judging by her right hand in front of her. Draco had grabbed her left hand, and they were still connected to each other (for this reason two beds had been pushed together to lay them down). They were both looking down and to the left, and Draco’s left hand was up, as though he’d been holding his wand.

The wand and map lay on a table beside the beds.

Harry hardly noticed Remus pulling him close, for his eyes had returned to Kitty’s face. She looked utterly… horrified. What could be so frightening that Kirsten Black would show fear?

Regulus and Narcissa arrived minutes later, going straight to their children.

“No…” whispered Regulus. “Kitty…” 

Narcissa reached out to touch Draco’s left hand. “My baby…” 

Remus let go of Harry and laid a hand on Regulus’ shoulder.

“You were supposed to protect her,” Regulus said, stiffening. 

Remus blinked in surprise. “Regulus, I-”

Regulus shrugged him off, holding his daughter’s petrified hand, and Remus backed away.

Harry could see the hurt on Remus’ face, and he wrapped his arms around him. He felt his uncle return the embrace. 

“Professor Lupin,” said another voice. 

Remus looked up at McGonagall.

“May I see you for a moment, please?” she asked. 

Remus reluctantly released Harry and followed the Deputy Headmistress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't resist including one of my favorite Ron lines, "Why couldn't it be follow the butterflies?" I don't know why I love that line so much.
> 
> Anyways, I actually did cry while I was writing the end of this chapter. I personally feel that Regulus' reaction is in character. Let me know what you all think.


	14. Ginny

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brain: Do your homework.  
> Me: But I just did part of it.  
> Brain: You gotta...  
> Me: But it's not due for another week?  
> Brain: Do. It.  
> Me: But I want to work on my fanfics  
> Brain: Now.  
> Me: No.  
> Brain: Commence panic mode.  
> Me: WHY DO YOU DO THIS TO ME  
> Brain: DO YOUR HOMEWORK
> 
> And that is why it's almost 9:30 at night and I'm just now starting to work on fanfictions. I literally spent my whole Saturday working on homework and rewatching the Bake Off on Netflix.
> 
> Enjoy the chapter.

Harry looked around the Hospital Wing.

Regulus was trembling, hunched over next to Kitty. Across from him, Narcissa traced Draco’s face.

Ron and Neville were both stood beside Hermione, and Harry joined them. He mimicked Regulus and reached out to touch Hermione’s fisted hand.

That was when he noticed something in her hand. 

He carefully pulled it out. 

“Is that parchment?” whispered Ron.

Harry nodded and unfolded it. His eyes widened as he read the paragraph on the parchment.

“Come on,” he hissed to the other two. They dashed out of the Hospital Wing, only to find Remus and Minnie were not in the corridor.

“What is it?” asked Ron. 

“We’ve got to find Remus,” Harry said. “The monster… it’s a basilisk. That’s the voice I heard before. It’s a snake, so I could hear it speak, even though no one else could.”

Neville was reading the parchment. “If you look directly into its eyes, you die…”

“But no one’s been killed,” said Ron.

Harry didn’t need long to think about this. “Because no one looked directly at it. It’s all been sheer dumb luck. That night we found Mrs. Norris, there was a lot of water on the floor. She must have seen the basilisk’s reflection in the water, and that’s why she was only petrified.”

“And Colin must’ve seen it through his camera lens,” Neville concluded. “Penelope and Hermione had a mirror.”

“And Justin could have been looking through Nearly Headless Nick,” Ron added. “And, well, ghosts can’t die twice…”

“Draco and Kitty were looking down. They must have seen its reflection in the water, just like Mrs. Norris,” Harry said.

“But basilisks are gigantic,” Ron said. “How’s this thing moving about a school?”

“Look what Hermione wrote,” said Harry, holding out the parchment. At the bottom she’d scrawled the word ‘pipes’.

“Bloody hell,” said Ron. “It’s using the plumbing?”

“What’re we waiting for?” cried Nevile. “Let’s go!”

They ran all over the school, from Remus’ office to Minnie’s to the staff room. Somewhere on the third floor, Neville stopped.

“Look,” he said. 

On the wall, written in blood just below the first message, was a terrifying message.

“ _Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever,_ ” Ron read.

A voice echoed through the corridor just then. 

“ _All students are to return to their House dormitories immediately. All staff, return to the staffroom. Immediately._ ”

“That was McGonagall,” said Harry.

“We’ve got to tell them,” said Neville.

“There’s no time,” said Ron. “The monster’s taken someone.”

“But we don’t even know where the Chamber is!” cried Neville.

“Yes, we do,” said Harry.

And then he was running again.

He stopped in front of the girl’s lavatory. Snape was gone, but there was still water slipping out beneath the door.

Harry led them inside, greeted almost immediately by Myrtle. He quickly asked her how she died.

After hearing her story, he turned to the sink and mirror she pointed at. The faucet and handles were made in a serpent design.

“More snakes,” said Ron.

“That’s why Kitty was so scared,” said Harry. “She hates snakes.”

“That’s it!” cried Neville. “Harry, speak Parseltongue!”

Harry didn’t need to be told twice. He concentrated for a moment, and then said to the sink, “ _Open._ ”

Somehow, it worked. The sink moved downward, leaving a small opening, big enough for a person.

“What, did the founders not believe in stairs or something?” asked Ron, gazing into the hole.

Harry turned to Neville. “Nev, you’ve got to go to the staffroom. Tell Remus what we know, and bring him here. As fast as you can.”

“What are you going to do?” asked Neville.

“We’re gonna go down there,” said Ron.

Before Neville could stop him, Harry jumped.

* * *

Harry looked down at the wound on his arm and wondered if he was truly dying. Although the basilisk was dead, with help from Fawkes, its venomous fang had punctured Harry’s arm. 

Ron was helpless next to Ginny nearby. 

And Riddle stood in triumph.

“You’ll be back with your Mudblood mother soon, Harry… She gave you twelve years, but it was all in vain. Defeat is your true destiny,” Riddle gloated.

Harry was now breathing hard, his mind racing. There had to be something he could do. 

“Harry! The diary!” Ron cried, tossing the book at Harry. “He came out of it, right?”

It somehow clicked in Harry’s mind what Ron was telling him. He picked up the diary. 

“What are you doing?” Riddle demanded.

Harry picked up the basilisk fang next to him.

“Harry!” cried a new voice.

Harry, Riddle, and Ron looked up to see Remus running towards them. Riddle raised Harry’s wand at Remus.

“Avada-”

And that was when Harry stabbed the book with the basilisk fang.

* * *

Ron pushed the doors of the Hospital Wing open, still semi-supporting Harry. Remus entered behind them, an unconscious Ginny in his arms.

“You found them!” cried Molly. She and Arthur came over as Remus lay Ginny on the nearest bed.

“She’s unconscious,” Remus said, as Molly and Arthur watched Madam Pomfrey immediately tend to Ginny.

He stepped away from the bed and turned back to Harry, his hands moving from Harry’s face to his shoulders.

“I’m alright,” Harry said quietly. “Fawkes healed me.”

And then Remus pulled him into the tightest embrace.

“Never. Do. That. Again.” Remus said, half-sobbing.

“I’m sorry,” said Harry, squeezing him back.

When Remus finally let him go, Neville, Regulus, Narcissa, Snape, Dumbledore and McGonagall had joined them.

“I understand you’ve been through quite an ordeal, boys,” said Dumbledore. “But there is some confusion about what happened in the Chamber.”

They all followed his gaze, towards Ron, who was holding the sword and hat. Harry looked down at the destroyed diary. 

“It started with this,” said Harry, showing them the diary. He, Ron, and Neville then took turns telling the story from start to finish.

When it was over, Remus pulled Harry close again. Molly gave both Ron and Neville a warm hug. 

The professors seemed unsure whether to congratulate the boys for their success or punish them for their reckless behavior, and instead stood to the side, watching the scene unfold.

“Mummy?” said a small voice.

“Ginny?” Molly said, going to her daughter’s side. “I’m here, dear.”

Ginny’s eyes opened slowly. “I’m… sorry…”

“You’ve got nothing to apologize for,” Arthur assured her.

The doors opened again, but this time it was Sirius, still dressed in his Auror uniform, followed by Flitwick with Percy and the twins.

“You’re back!” cried Remus.

“Finally learned the word for Portkey in Portuguese. What happened?” Sirius asked immediately, embracing his husband and godson. He glanced at his brother.

Instead of answering Sirius’ question, Regulus turned to Remus.

“Remus…” he began. “I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have blamed you for this. Can you forgive me?”

Remus gave him a small smile, and hugged him.

When they parted, Sirius looked from one to the other, then at Ron still holding the sword and hat. 

“What the hell happened?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who missed it: Sirius wasn't there because he was at an Auror conference in Brazil. I just know there's going to be that one person who will be confused by him just showing up.


	15. Cured

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the last chapter has arrived. Year 2 is wrapping up. Year 3 is coming soon, by Halloween.

“How did it go?” asked Regulus, as Sirius landed on Dumbledore’s hearth rug. He and Remus had each taken a comfortable chair across from Dumbledore.

“As well as expected,” Sirius said. “Fudge doesn’t believe the diary was a horcrux.”

“He thinks you’re lying?” asked Regulus.

Sirius shrugged. “Honestly, I’m not sure what he’s thinking at this point. Scrimgeour believes me, though, so McGrath and I will continue Operation: Phantom.”

“You can’t really blame him, can you?” asked Remus. “There’s very little compelling evidence for the diary itself.”

“We’ve three eyewitness accounts,” said Sirius. “Four if you count Ginny.”

Remus shook his head. “Are you really surprised that Fudge doesn’t believe three children and your werewolf husband?”

Dumbledore nodded. “Whether he admits it or not, some part of Cornelius knows you are right, Sirius.”

“And we’ve made progress on our mission,” said Regulus. “Another horcrux down. There are only three left.”

“The real question,” said Remus. “Is how Ginny got the diary in the first place?”

“Oh, I had an idea about that one,” said Sirius with a mischievous grin. “And Arthur and I may have already had our revenge.”

Remus raised his eyebrows.

“Remember our shopping trip to Diagon Alley, when we were in Flourish and Blotts?” Sirius asked.

Remus thought about this for a moment, and then his eyes widened. “Lucius Malfoy! He picked up Ginny’s cauldron!”

“Perfect opportunity to slip an evil diary into it,” said Regulus. “That bastard. I’m glad he was sacked as a school governor.”

“That’s not all,” said Sirius. “With Scrimgeour’s blessing, McGrath and I partnered with the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office and executed a raid on Malfoy Manor. Cissy helped, too. She remembered some of Lucius’ hiding places. He’s got a mountain of fines to pay, or he faces prison time.”

“No less than the bastard deserves,” said Regulus. “All of our children nearly died because of that diary. Multiple times.”

Sirius agreed, noticing how Remus’ face had paled. He reached out and massaged his husband’s shoulder.

Shortly after his return from Brazil, Sirius had heard the story of how Harry had come face to face with Voldemort for the second time in as many years. Acromantulas, Ginny’s involvement, the petrification of Kitty, Draco and Hermione, and a goddamn basilisk. The children had only survived out of sheer luck as well as the assistance of Solan and Fawkes. 

It was this reason that Sirius’ respect for Dumbledore had grown exponentially. Although he hadn’t been allowed on Hogwarts’ grounds, he somehow predicted the children’s actions and sent the wolves and Fawkes to help them. 

After a short silence, Sirius asked, “How long until they’re revived?” 

“Severus said the elixirs should be ready tomorrow morning,” Remus answered. “Neville’s been helping Madam Pomfrey prepare the Mandrakes.”

“How is Harry?” asked Regulus. 

“He misses his friends,” said Remus, leaning into Sirius’ hand. “But he told me his classmates have been a lot nicer. When Hermione was petrified, people realized Harry was innocent. And, well, they know Draco didn’t petrify himself.”

“Do the students know what happened in the Chamber?” asked Sirius.

“They know Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Neville were involved,” said Dumbledore. “But I’ve ensured that details are sparse, and nobody knows about the diary or Ginny’s actions while under its influence.”

Sirius nodded, fiddling with Remus’ hair. “So they’re the heroes of the school again.”

“And we’re going to die of heart attacks before we reach age forty,” said Remus. 

“They’re getting electives next year,” said Regulus. “Maybe they’ll be too busy to stick their noses into dangerous things.”

Dumbledore nodded wisely. “One can only hope.”

* * *

“Kitty!” 

“Harry! Ron! Neville!”

“Draco!”

“Hermione!”

“Ginny!”

Ron, Ginny, Neville and Harry embraced their friends happily, just moments after Madam Pomfrey administered the elixir.

“What happened?” asked Hermione.

“It’s a long story,” said Ron. “We’ll fill you in later.”

“Blimey!” came a cry from the corner. 

Colin Creevey was up and looking around.

“How did I get here?” he asked Professor McGonagall next to him.

Justin Finch-Fletchley jumped out of bed. “Professor Sprout! There’s a snake! A giant bloody snake!”

Professor Sprout patted her student on the back. “It’s alright, dear. The basilisk is gone.”

Nearby, Percy and Penny were hugging, and Sir Nicholas was being greeted by the other three House ghosts.

“What day is it?” asked Hermione. 

“Uh, the first of June,” said Harry.

“Oh no! What about exams?” Hermione cried.

“They’ve been canceled,” said Remus. 

Both Hermione and Draco clapped their hands over their mouths, appalled, but Kitty cheered.

“Who won the Quidditch cup?” asked Justin, and Ernie had to give him the bad news. 

It didn’t take long for Madam Pomfrey to release them, and Remus took Harry and his friends to Dumbledore’s office, where Regulus and Sirius were waiting. Hermione flooed home with Sirius to see her parents, who had been worried sick about her, while Kitty reunited with her father, and Draco with his mother.

“What about the others?” asked Harry. “Colin and Justin and Penelope?”

“Their heads of Houses are each taking them home to see their parents,” said Remus. “They’ll most likely walk to Hogsmeade to use side-along Apparition.”

When Hermione returned, they bid Sirius and Regulus farewell, and Remus walked them out of the office. 

“Now, I’d prefer to have an uneventful rest of the year, so no end-of-year pranks, if you don’t mind,” said Remus. “I’ve already made Fred and George swear to it.”

“We won’t,” said Kitty. 

“And no night-time wanderings,” Remus added, looking straight at Harry.

“Yes, sir,” Harry said, hugging Remus one last time before they left him.

They finally relaxed in the S.P.E.W. headquarters, where they discussed the events that led to the showdown in the Chamber of Secrets, which took about two hours. By the time they were finished, they were all too tired to even play Fossils & Flames, and went straight to lunch. 

The rest of the school was excited to see them, and most of them were burning with questions. Fortunately, the Gryffindor and Slytherin Quidditch teams came through for them. 

At the Slytherin table, Kitty, Draco, and their friends were surrounded by Flint and the rest of Kitty’s teammates, while Wood and the Gryffindor team did the same for Harry and his friends. Thus, no one dared to approach them with their nosy inquiries.

“I suppose Dumbledore isn’t going to give us any points this year for saving the whole school this time, is he?” asked Ron. 

“Minnie gave us a few,” Harry reminded him.

“Yeah, five points each,” said Ron. “Didn’t exactly put us in the lead, did it? We’re still only in second place. And Slytherin is in third.”

“Well, you can’t expect him to reward us for all of the rules we broke,” said Neville. “And the three of us were given awards for services to the school. Gran is proud of me.”

“We’re only ten points behind Hufflepuff,” said Hermione. “We could still win. There’s still more than two weeks left before term ends.”

Ron didn’t answer, instead taking a rather angry bite of his roast pheasant.

* * *

A few days later, the second years were each handed a list of electives to choose from, and Harry and his friends took theirs to S.P.E.W. headquarters. They had to choose two of five different classes.

“What are you going to choose?” Hermione asked Harry.

“Care of Magical Creatures, definitely,” said Harry.

“I wish we could drop History of Magic already,” said Ron. 

“Not until sixth year,” said Kitty. “I’d like to take Muggle Studies, I think.”

“I’m just going to take Care of Magical Creatures and Divination,” said Neville. “I heard Divination is really easy.”

“That’s what I’m going to do,” said Ron. “The only class that actually sounds interesting is Care of Magical Creatures.”

Harry pursed his lips. “I don’t know… Sirius said Divination is a load of rubbish.”

“What did Remus say?” asked Neville.

“He wouldn’t comment on his coworkers,” said Harry. “But he said he took Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies, and Arithmancy.”

“Why’d he choose those?” asked Ron. “Wasn’t his Mum a Muggle?”

“She was,” said Kitty. “Which would make Muggle Studies an easy class for him. I heard Ancient Runes and Arithmancy require a lot of reading.”

“Reading,” said Ron. “Remus’ favorite hobby.”

They all fell silent after this, each making their own selections. In the end, Harry picked three classes before turning his list in to Professor McGonagall and heading upstairs to continue packing.

* * *

Grandpa Pollux, Maddy and Sirius were waiting on the platform when the train reached Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. It was a full moon tonight, so Remus and Regulus were already at the cottage. Sirius would join them after taking Kitty and Harry’s trunks back to Grimmauld Place.

“How are you?” asked Pollux. “You’ve had another extraordinary year, I heard.”

“It was,” said Harry. “And somehow Hufflepuff won the House Cup. Can we play chess later?”

Pollux smiled at his grandson. “I think that’s a splendid idea.”

Sirius bid them all farewell, shrunk Kitty and Harry’s trunks, took Aurora and her basket, and disapparated. Maddy took Kitty’s hand and did the same. And then it was Harry’s turn. He waved goodbye to his friends, and took Pollux’s hand, Hegwig’s empty cage in the other.

“Are you ready?” asked Pollux.

Harry looked up at his grandfather and smiled. “Ready.”


End file.
